Lately I’ve been really curious about what autism means to my 10-year old son, Jack. I mean, I know he knows he has it. And we know he hates it. But what does it mean to him, exactly? So, I conducted some high-level research. It went something like this: “Jack, what does autism mean to […]
“Can you believe Jack made this?” the karate instructor said, handing me a small white flag. “He did?” I asked, turning the piece of fabric over in my hands. “Yes!” she said excitedly. “All on his own. We told them to use the space to describe themselves, and that’s what he drew.” He’d colored boxes in […]
In a rare display of affection last Friday night, Jack bounced next to me on the couch in our family room where I was sitting with Joe enjoying the lights on the Christmas tree. For a moment we all three sat together, listening to the muted chaos of four other people taking showers upstairs. “At karate,” he blurted […]
“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.” […]
I thought everyone would enjoy an update about how things are going with karate these days. I’m happy to report that it’s continued to be a huge success for Jack and our family. In November, Jack took his first belt test and advanced to the yellow level. He’s enjoyed the new moves, and practices his […]
Last Friday I was standing in the cramped lobby of the gym, chatting with another dad and waiting for Henry’s Tiny Tots tumbling class to end. As we talked about our three-year olds and kids in general, I mentioned that I have a son with autism. “Oh,” he said with an interested expression on his […]
We enrolled Jack in karate four years ago. On Saturday mornings, we dressed our four-year old autistic son in his stiff white uniform and Joe drove him to class at the local karate studio. It was an unmitigated disaster. For forty-five minutes Jack would whirl and spin around the circumference of the room, circling and […]