I’ve lived this. I get it.
I went through all the feelings of guilt, the feelings of “Why autism? …of “Why us?” …”Why Jonah?”
It’s like I had all these hopes and dreams for Jonah… this “expectation” of what raising him would be like…and then “poof.” Gone.
Now, nothing is certain. And if I’m not careful, the fear of uncertainty can be crippling if I let it.
So I get it. I was in a “funk” for a couple months around the time Jojo was diagnosed…
But You know what I finally figured out?
Life ain’t fair.
We were never promised an easy life. Challenges arise. Things ARE GOING to happen outside your control that will make life difficult.
If it isn’t autism, it will be something else.
My grandmother lived in a grass hut in the Philippines and was orphaned at 13 at the height of WWII. She had to dodge enemy artillery roar in her own village just to survive.
She never asked for that life.
But she did what she had to do to make the best of it.
And now, she has a phenomenal story to tell of love and overcoming adversity and making a new life for herself.
One of which I am eternally grateful.
Parenting a child with autism can be challenging. It can stretch us to our limits.
But when I put aside all my preconceived notions of “parenting” and comparisons with other kids and parents, I find I have a son who is full of life, who loves to laugh, learn, and love.
And I have a job as a parent to find those things in Jonah that drive him to excel, to teach him and train him and to help him to become the best person he can possibly be.
We will all have things that will test us in life. Friends and loved ones will die. Jobs are lost. People get sick. Bad things will happen.
And I’ve said it before.
The true test of our character is how we handle and OVERCOME that adversity to grow as a person.