It's scary to think about as a grown woman, so I can't imagine what went through their heads as we had the discussion. Jackson is 15, he ALMOST knows everything at this point in his life. Lol. He is really close with Asher and my heart melts every time he scoops up that baby to play. Riley is 12. He is a deep thinker. I knew not to take his reaction at face value because he would be thinking for a long time about all of it. Knox is 7. He is extremely logical about most things. He always talks in a matter-of-fact way.
I asked the boys, "What do you think about when you hear the word Autism?"
I barely got it out of my mouth and Knox replies, "Asher."
I couldn't catch my breath. I tried to not burst into tears. I didn't want to scare or upset them. I moved on to the other two. Jackson and Riley both mentioned kids they knew with Autism. Those kids are totally different from one another. So, I thought I would explain why Autism is described on a spectrum.
I drew a line. At one end, I described the most severe cases. At the other end, I told them about people that had such mild characteristics, you wouldn't know that anything was going on with them. Asher is close to the mild end. If he were speaking, there would be very little to notice about his behavior.
I have checked with the boys to make sure they aren't worried or have questions. Jackson has already had a kid ask him if "his brother has problems." Ugh, this is a big issue for ME. Even though I know that comment came from an immature kid, my personality doesn't allow me to ignore ignorance. (The shirt I wore yesterday says, " I have a good heart, but this mouth." 😏)
So, my family is out of the closet. Randy and I both feel a sense of relief and have less fear of the "A" word.
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