Our Bold, Not-So-Secret Mission: A Place at the Table
I resisted the siren song of sleep and got up when my alarm clock chirped. (I have a clock that allows you to wake up to things like 'Rainforest Sounds' or 'Birds Chirping'. My husband loves to make fun of it.) I dressed quickly, and sprinted to catch the bus downtown. I was heading to the fifth annual Heart of L'Arche Breakfast at the Mayflower Hotel, and I did not want to be late. I've been a part of L'Arche since the Breakfast began, and I've never missed one. This year's event held particular poignance, since my husband and I...
Read More
It’s Taboo, So Let’s Talk About It: Interacting With People With Special Needs
He was such a beautiful baby, I could hardly take my eyes off him. He was sitting in a booster seat at the restaurant, smiling and cooing, with his dad beside him and his older sister across the table. The father looked a little tired; he was wearing a business suit, so he'd probably picked up the kids right after work. Yet even so, he was speaking kindly, and I could tell that he loved his kids deeply. The little family was seated next to my best friend and me, and it was all I could do not to pull...
Read More
Hoping Against Hope, Lighting It Up Blue: World Autism Awareness Day
This past week, I experienced a new kind of homecoming. My family had the joy of being together, but we also had the sorrow of my brother Willie's outbursts. For the first time in a long time, he had multiple instances of out-of-control aggression in the span of a week. As such, World Autism Awareness Day is tinged with pain for me. It's the grief of watching my parents incur injuries as they try to protect their son from self-harm. It's the powerlessness of wanting to help and not knowing how. Most of all, it's the sound of Willie's weeping...
Read More
Why I Am Not Afraid of Having A Child with Autism
When I'm feeling out of sorts or uninspired, my favorite remedy is to go for a long walk. Such was the case this weekend, when I found myself stressed on Saturday morning. So, I headed out the door. After a mile of walking, I felt myself starting to smile. The tension within abated as I noticed the beauty around me. Blooming flowers, fluttering birds, blue skies ... all worked together to move my mind from anxiety to appreciation. As I walked through Rock Creek Park, I felt the noise within quieting down. And in the newfound quiet, I remembered a...
Read More
Darling Neurotic, Meet Your New Best Friend: The Radical Practice of Rest
My husband and I have been under the weather this week. We're dealing with some kind of virus, and he's facing seasonal allergies on top of that. We've been keeping up with our most important responsibilities by sleeping or resting every free moment. And slowly, we're starting to feel better. This week of fatigue has had me feeling anxious; I worry about not getting enough work done each day, not moving faster toward my big goals. And there's always this nagging, hypochondriac worry that maybe this bug is something serious. In moments like these, I call my dear friend Brooke...
Read More
Bittersweet Endings: Beginnings in Disguise?
Being filmed for a documentary is a peculiar exercise. I say this because, for the last six months, I've been working with filmmaker Edwin Mah on a documentary about finding meaning in your most challenging relationships, simple living, and loving someone with special needs. It's wild to think that an actual filmmaker is making an actual film about the things I love and strive for, but so it is. As such, Edwin has filmed several interviews with me, my yoga practice, my tiny studio apartment ... and last week, he filmed me and my friend Leo* at McDonald's, Leo's favorite...
Read More
I was a Stranger to Beauty (and Who Invited Me In)
Photographs by Stefan Bremer, courtesy of Charles Krause. On a chilly Sunday afternoon, I pedaled downtown to see a photography exhibit. As I parked my bike and dialed the apartment number, I wondered what I was walking into. I didn't know the gallery or its owner, but a dear friend had told me I simply had to see these photographs. On the strength of her word I stood, and a voice welcomed me and buzzed me in. Charles Krause opened the door for my wind-swept self and took my cold hand into a warm handshake, and bid me...
Read More
Overhearing that Argument (A Lesson Learned in Laughter)
Happy Monday, all! First off, I'd like to welcome visitors from Autism Key and I'm A Mom Too. I have two guest posts up this week; "Autism, Siblings and the R-Word Effect" and, "A Lifetime of Lies (And A Truth to Set You Free)." First-time visitors, be sure to check out the welcome video (to your right and below), and visit the About page. Finally, I'd like to offer you a gift: Your Creed of Care: How To Dig For Treasure In People (Without Getting Buried Alive). This book is about balancing the responsibilities of caregiving with the responsibility of...
Read More
