Dear Jack, Here’s the thing. You have autism. I have been waiting years for this conversation. I have so much to ask you and tell you. I know—at nine years old—you aren’t ready to answer my questions, nor will you understand my explanations, but I figured it was best to get it all down on paper […]
Right now, I’m sitting in a hospital waiting room. No, this isn’t a repeat post from two weeks ago; I am actually sitting in the same plastic chair, at the same white workstation, for the second time in thirteen days. Once again, I am waiting for Joe. Once again, he is gowned and unconscious for […]
I was just digging into my sushi last Saturday night when Carrie looked at me with a big smile and said “I have a great idea!” I knew I was in for it. “You should write a post as a follow-up to last week’s ‘This is Marriage’ blog.” I couldn’t believe it. That dreaded day had […]
Right now I’m sitting in a hospital waiting room. Or, to be exact, I’m sitting in the hallway outside of the waiting room, at a workstation specifically designed for people like me. People who are waiting in a hospital. I am waiting for Joe. At this moment, he is gowned and unconscious, undergoing a surgery called a […]
“I want to GO TOO! I want to go to Mill-ya’s party!” Henry screamed, kicking my seat with his Spider-Man sneakers. It was a Sunday afternoon, and we had just dropped Rose off at her friend Amelia’s carnival-themed birthday party. “Henry,” Jack interrupted his brother’s wailing, irritated. “Stop crying. I never go to birthday parties.” […]
The bedroom door opens with a creak and a very young boy steps out into the darkened hallway. Just shy of three, this boy is tall for his age and sturdy in build, wearing multicolored pajamas that are too short for him. He quietly steps to the landing of the staircase and begins to descend. The […]
“I need to make PLAY DOUGH. For TOMORROW!” Jack screamed as soon as he stepped off the bus last Wednesday. “What? Oh, okay, we’ll figure it out,” I told him as we made our way up the driveway. Hazily, I remembered this task buried somewhere in Mr. Hines’ weekly teacher notes. I thought about our schedule for […]
So, we’ve got this guy in middle school now. And he is all sorts of cool. Savvy. Phrases like let’s play have been replaced by let’s hang out. He makes scrambled egg sandwiches for himself in the morning and wants to walk home from the bus stop alone in the afternoon. There is swagger in his neon-sneakered […]
“I have a question,” said a woman in the second row. She was wearing a red cardigan and had been quiet for most of the hour. “How do you get the things you want from the school?” I was finishing up a reading in a nearby town over the summer, and the discussion had just about petered out. […]
“Tomorrow morning. At 6:45. I’m going to be on TV,” Jack announced around a mouthful of kale. The chatter at the dinner table came to a screeching halt, and we all stared at him. TV? I thought to myself during the pocket of silence. Didn’t you just go to school and come home today? When did you […]