Busy on the Bus

**Its been awhile since I have posted about Dillon’s behavior, but he has been one happy boy lately. The new medication regiment has worked out in our favor, and he has started to smile, laugh and play with us more than he has in a while. **

 

This past week Dillon was all smiles and giggles when I would go and get him off the bus. He would run to the door, jump up and yell and show extreme excitement to be home from school. We would come in the door and take off his harness, take the lunch box from his backpack and I would fix him up a small snack. He would remove all of his clothing and put shorts on, then go hang out by the pool. What great weather we’ve had here in Florida for swinging and swimming! Dillon has just been the happiest of campers, and truly seems to be enjoying life to the fullest right now.

Then Friday comes along, and I hear the screeching breaks from the bus stopping in front of the house. I slip on my flip flops and stride out the door towards the bus. I see his bus driver unbuckle his seat belt from a few strides away, and see him head towards the back of the bus. Usually this isn’t a good sign. As I step on to the bus, I can hear yelling and smacking. The other kids that ride Dillon’s bus were getting into an argument, telling each other to “shut up” and smacking the windows with their palms. Dillon was a little agitated by all this commotion, and quickly aggressed towards the bus driver who was helping me unhook his harness. He scratched up the undersides of my arms as I held his hands, and he slid sideways in the seat to try and kick the bus driver as he passed by. After a rough three minutes of unhooking him, I lead him down the steps and signed as I stepped off the bus.

I knew today would be a bad day. He ran up to the door and started smacking it with his hands, screaming while he jumped up and down. I quickly opened the door for him to go inside, batting down his hands as he attempted to pinch me. He ran inside, screaming and headed straight for his room. I quickly locked up his snacks that I had set out for him, making sure not to reward his bad behavior. But interestingly enough, after sitting in his room for a minute or two he returned with a smile on his face. He gave me a “nice touch” and asked for his snacks. I brought them back out and was pleased to see he had calmed down quickly and without damaging himself or the house.

The bus driver had mentioned that he thought it could be the other kids that stirred him up. He said his teacher put him on the bus that afternoon and he was as happy as can be, so the raging of the others behind Dillon was enough to make him unhappy. I don’t blame him, if I heard all that commotion the entire way home from school I would be unhappy too. I’m just happy he calmed himself down and was a happy boy all afternoon.

Autism Awareness Month

My whole life I’ve been a promoter of autism awareness, first because growing up people called the syndrome “retarded” and second, I believe that empathy and knowledge are the cure for ignorance. I have found that since I have matured into my ripe old age of 25, I have discovered that there are some very ignorant people in this world, and their ignorance breeds stupidity which leads to misunderstanding and therefore the title “retarded” is given to anyone with a disability. This is obviously not true in any case, and though there are people in this world who are mentally retarded, there are also those with Autism spectrum disorder, down syndrome and other mental disorders that affect speech, motor and communication skills. Throughout my school age, from elementary to high school, I frowned upon the overuse of the word “retarded” and voiced my concern for a change in vocabulary for those who used it. There were some who laughed in my face at my motherly concern of the use of the word, and there were those who understood and quickly showed remorse for their actions.

When I was younger, my family took a trip to Ron Jon’s Surf Shop inCocoa BeachFlorida. We took Dillon in a big adult size stroller that could easily fit a 200 pound person. While we strolled through the isles, my mother and I picking out goodies, a man came up and briefly voiced his opinion. “That boy is too big to be in that stroller”. My father, who is usually not one to get angry, quickly became red with anger and jumped in this man’s face. “You should watch who your f***ing talking to” My mother loudly yelled at my father to calm down, and the guy quickly walked out of the store. After making a bit of a scene, my father quieted down and continued to push Dillon in the stroller as if nothing happened. Nothing did happen, just my father defending his son who couldn’t defend himself.

So in this wonderful month of April, which is declared “Autism Awareness Month” take the time to read articles about autism, take the time to talk to someone who deals with Autism on a daily basis, or knows someone with Autism. Volunteer, and make a difference in your community. Everyone knows someone with autism, since now with the definition change there are 1 out of 85 children born with autism every year. Who knows, someday you could have a baby with autism. Then it is you who battles ignorance with knowledge and love, and becomes a solider in a war that is far from over.