Once again, it's time for a new post over at
Support for Special Needs. I wanted to offer something up to the parents and families out there dealing with external monsters on top of the personal ones that nip at their heels without rest. I've felt badly for special needs parents of late; it seems like the world has been unusually cruel to a lot of them. And it reminded me of something I wrote in my book, a fantasy about escaping to an island.
It was an entirely wrong-headed fantasy, and I knew it back then. Even today, however, it holds some of the same appeal to me as it did years ago when I'd stand on the beach in Connecticut with Schuyler and wish that the future that I was afraid would bedevil her was on the other side of the sea. If it was just us, protected from that future and the grand rough world, I thought, we would make it just fine.
As it turns out, we did anyway.
Yes. I often find myself not upset about my son's disability, but rather about the reactions of those around us toward his disability.
ReplyDeleteMy work leads me to a lot of situations where I meet new people. Conversation often turns to children and, like most parents, I love to talk about my son. So, I ask you: how do you tell others about your child's disability. And then how do you deal with the shock and horror in the eyes of your acquaintances when you do tell them? How do you make it not quite so awkward?
I need to claw back my copy of your book. It's been years, but reading the excerpt just now reminded me of how much it meant to me (and why I loaned it to everyone to read)! My son's Teacher of the Deaf believes that the overwhelming amount of time, special needs children find just the right parents that will love and guide them through their "broken" journey. There's no question that Schuyler is as lucky in parentage as you are in parenthood.
ReplyDeleteI'm headed over to read your new post, but before I did so, I had to tell you how dang adorable that photo is. I just love it.
ReplyDelete