Is there any job as full of joy and grief as that of being a parent? I'm not sure. What I do know is that when your child has additional needs those wild swings are even more intense and the grief is often experienced on a daily basis. The losses that we have experienced since the day my older daughter was born, have been manifold. The seizures, the procedures, the tests as well as the teasing, the bullying and the rejection have all resulted in grief that is sometimes profound. The happiness that we have felt as a result of even the smallest of her triumphs is immeasurable.
That is why school is so important. Our children, typical or not, spend most of their young lives at school. My daughter has been there for more than 10,000 hours as far as my limited math can figure and so that place has to work for her. She is that square peg trying to fit in the round hole and it is not easy for her. We have been fortunate enough to have a 7th Grade teacher and an SEA who seem to understand her. When we started the year, I brought The Source for Non-Verbal Learning Disorder by Sue Thompson to school and my sense is that these teachers read it. They read it and thought about how they could support her in her journey through Grade 7. She is having an awesome year: playing sports, doing presentations, having fewer of the awkward social faux pas that have dominated her first 7 years in school and most importantly, feeling pretty good about her self at the tender age of almost-13.
There are many more losses ahead for our family and so much more grief. God willing, there is also much more joy, happiness, peace and contentment ahead for us all. Our willingness to greet all these experiences is understood. We are parents after all.
That is why school is so important. Our children, typical or not, spend most of their young lives at school. My daughter has been there for more than 10,000 hours as far as my limited math can figure and so that place has to work for her. She is that square peg trying to fit in the round hole and it is not easy for her. We have been fortunate enough to have a 7th Grade teacher and an SEA who seem to understand her. When we started the year, I brought The Source for Non-Verbal Learning Disorder by Sue Thompson to school and my sense is that these teachers read it. They read it and thought about how they could support her in her journey through Grade 7. She is having an awesome year: playing sports, doing presentations, having fewer of the awkward social faux pas that have dominated her first 7 years in school and most importantly, feeling pretty good about her self at the tender age of almost-13.
There are many more losses ahead for our family and so much more grief. God willing, there is also much more joy, happiness, peace and contentment ahead for us all. Our willingness to greet all these experiences is understood. We are parents after all.
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