Aspies Are Great!
As I’ve mentioned before, when I was having philosophical discussions with Michael at two years old, I wasn’t quite sure how to proceed from there. I had heard that two-year-olds liked things like Elmo, parks, crayons, and stuff.
Michael did in fact like those typical things, but mostly he liked thinking about intense curiosities in our world (death for example), crying about how wrong I was doing things for him, and laughing joyfully when he wasn’t sleeping. He was always “full-on” with whatever he was experiencing, and as joyful as that was, it was entirely exhausting.
Here’s the thing that I continually come back to and the thing that I consistently notice but might need reminded of sometimes. This thing is about how our individuality is our essential gift to the world.
Michael’s gifts to the world
Michael is by far one of the most amazing human beings I’ve ever had the privilege to know, and not only that, I actually birthed him into the world. Go me!
He’s incredibly insightful and his problem-solving creativity leads me to believe that he will be a major change maker in our world, hopefully for the betterment of humanity.
He’s incredibly robust with energy and very easy to read emotionally.
His self-reflection skills continue to amaze people, especially those who are in the psychology field. If people are open hearted, they come to love and adore him very quickly.
Michael is hugely generous and helpful to others. He loves nothing more than to share knowledge and watch someone understand something they didn’t know before.
Michael is very limited with his food choices, so as much as I worry about his nutritional intake, his food purchasing and prep is incredibly simple.
He’s impressively independent at his current young age of thirteen.
The list goes on and on . . .
In short, he’s an amazing young man who is making huge strides toward his optimal life even with his “different way of being.” And that is what I’d like to invite each and every one of us to continue to do.
I invite you to list all of the things your Aspie does well. I invite you to notice how helpful those things are to the world. You are fully invited to make a list of the amazing gifts they have to offer.
Some examples of this might be whether they can construct an incredible tower of Legos, or if they can draw a picture they couldn’t draw two months ago, or highlighting the fact that they said hello to a stranger with confidence and kindness. You can notice and admire anything they are doing well as well as things they are improving upon for their optimal life.
My focus for this message is mostly for you to see the Aspies who are realizing their greatness and thus helping to increase your compassion and motivation to nurture and support them to become the greatest they can be.
You are incredibly amazing!
But you. You, if you are not labeled Asperger’s, you are incredibly amazing. You have gifts that make humanity better. You are raising a child who is often times not the easiest to raise. You are doing this kindly, lovingly, intentionally, strongly, patiently, and consistently.
Exactly who YOU are is what makes you so great.
Remember your greatness, see your child’s strengths, honor your other family members for their contribution to humanity. Say it out loud and bring it stronger into the world for all to see and hear!
It matters that we share how great we are. It matters that we notice our successes (so often we only see our flaws). You matter, your child matters, humanity matters.
Thank you. Because you matter and I’m glad to share this reminder with you.
Mica
Want a place to list all of the great things about your child? Or about yourself? Meet me on Facebook and I’ll be happy to share with you!
