God made many beautiful, precious things. He made green, green grass and luminous butterflies and very strong trees. He made a bright blue sky warmed by a round sun, and a moon for the darkest nights. He also made autism. He made a child with a memory for hundreds of dates and facts, a child […]
Hi. My name is Carrie. I am married to a man named Joe. We have been married for twenty-one years. We have five kids. Our second son, Jack, has autism. Jack was diagnosed fourteen years ago. Joe and I were barely thirty years old. I had a baby on my hip and another one inside […]
My name is Carrie. I am married to a man named Joe. I am a mother. I have four boys, and one girl. I am raising a complicated child. His name is Jack. Jack is complicated because he has autism and he’s doesn’t play any sports and he has no friends and his report card […]
When it comes to autism, I say a lot of things. If I’m not saying things, I’m sitting at my laptop writing them. I say my son Jack was diagnosed when he was very small and although I was sad, I knew it was coming. I say he hardly ever slept, and he had a […]
Hi. My name is Carrie. I have five kids. My second son, Jack, is diagnosed with autism. Today, I’d like to explain the best way to talk to your child with autism about important matters. I have great wisdom and knowledge in this area. Ha! Isn’t that funny? I have no idea how to talk […]
Hi. My name is Carrie. I have five kids, and my second son is diagnosed with autism. His name is Jack. He is fifteen. Most people assume I have made peace with the whole autism thing by now. And I have. Truly, I have. I have made peace with the person he is and the […]
What can I tell you that you don’t already know? When you love someone with autism, you life is automatically different. You notice how fast people talk, the way we shout and laugh and sneeze and, in general, make a whole lot of racket all the time. Yet at the same time, our culture is […]
We are almost a month into the new school year. You’ve probably figured out how to unlock your locker by now. You know where the library is, and you’ve made a few new friends. Maybe you have the weird kid in your class. You know, the one who has a grown-up standing around him all […]
Mom. Can we take. My autism away. Oh, buddy. Today, I did one thousand things wrong. I broke a glass at exactly 6:01 this morning, and I forgot to switch the laundry. I had a terrible workout. I missed a meeting at the school and I barely made it home in time for the bus. […]
That’s the thing about autism. Whatever needs to happen in the moment, will happen in the moment. Like a steam train gathering speed, there is no changing course on the inevitable, be it a cough, or a swear word, or an honest explanation about why Tide simply doesn’t get the job done on those tough stains.