He pulls my arm to hurry me along. "What is it, Ben? What is so exciting this morning???!" He takes me to the computer and pats the case for "ON!" Okay. He directs my mouse pointer with his finger - hand atop mine - to favorite places. Well, well ... Lo and Behold! Over there ... at friend Dynamo's blog is a piece about our "Peanut." Yes ... I don't remember when we began calling Ben "Peanut." It popped out one day and just kind of stuck. Like hearty stew and cinnamon oatmeal to the ribs. Like gum in the hair. Like creamy peanut butter toes. It stuck.
Ben likes the moniker. Anyway. So ... how does this charismatic little autistic boy ... who charms most everyone he touches with some divinely inspired Love Force do it? How did he *KNOW* that blog post was sitting there waiting in all its SUNLY glory for viewing?? He is still medically referred to as "cognitively impaired" ... get the euphemism for "retarded."
We've done fine homeschooling and all I hope for Ben is that he can be comfortable in his own skin. And he has progressed in development! "Development Delay" is simply that. Delay. Not "can't grow or achieve." We finally received permissions from our State medical services to institute a new round of Occupational and Speech Therapy assessments. I requested the assistance because as Ben has developed into Age 7, his neuromuscular functions are showing areas where I felt he and I needed some help in the new levels he was reaching toward. So, in typical Ben fashion ... he has charmed and enchanted the staff of the Therapy Center. He is an aggressive hard worker. That's his personality ... not the autism. He is not without many anxieties in public areas. Wouldn't you be anxious to share who you are in public if the majority would view you as rejectable, retarded, an anomaly or worse ... an object of pity? He has found a loving group of therapists who believe in him as he is and are willing to help him achieve what he would like. So off we ride twice weekly for combined speech and occupational therapies. Our time will be limited at the Center so my goal is to have all the pieces and tools I need to help him achieve the maximum from the potentials he chooses. Week after next, I'd like to introduce Ben's brother and sister to his "Therapy World." When the three are together ... look out. You've not witnessed charismatic adjustments like they "manage" when together. I might be too old for this. LOL
So, back to my question. How did Benjamin Joshua *KNOW* that blog post was waiting? I don't have the exact answer. But, I do know it has to do with his type of Soul and the level in Spirit in which he primarily exists. He just knows things. And he has done things that are astoundingly remarkable in the realm of frightening quantum physics. I wrote about some of those things in his book "Mommy! Ben Made The Cake Fly!" wherein we described an incident in which he literally made a cake "fly." When Annie & Tink have a little more time [ha!] we'll post book excerpts at our Kin Notes website. Stay tuned.
In the meantime, we are pleased as punch ... to show you the following excerpts from a Dynamo who is one of the very few people in Our World who understands Ben on a level few will ever be able to:
Our Peanut's Big Day --- Part One
...Ben is mostly non-verbal, in the sense of speech/phonemes, but uses a tonal, preverbal lingo that is very expressive, if not syntactically elegant. Access to an experienced and open speech therapist is very important for Ben now, because his tonal expressions are becoming more varied, and he's used sign-language indicating his desire to speak. He's already capable of speech under certain circumstances. In those cases, great effort is required, often under strong emotional motivation.
He gets very little understanding and acceptance outside his homelife -- despite the fact that he's an engaging, beautiful, brilliant boy. Even if he weren't autistic, however, he'd be a puzzling, and perhaps disturbing, child to some people. He didn't fit in at a mainstream school (couldn't possibly have, and no doubt it was torture for him.) In many public contexts, Ben is considered a nuisance, curiosity, or object of pity -- all of which he senses and processes, by the way.
He needs exposure to "general public" environments that are positive and accepting, where people are glad to see him each week, looking forward to his company. His new occupational/speech therapy sessions look like great transitional bridges to other environments in which Ben's gifts can be acknowledged and shared.
Sonly Day: Part Two:
...Most of the staff there already know his appointment days! The office doors open as he ambles by in his Thomas Tank Engine light-up shoes. And all along the zen lanes, the cherry trees laugh and blossom.
...When I look at that joyful Peanut, I see the galaxy's heart ...
Look at this face
I know the years are showing
Look at this life
I still don't know where it's going
I don't know much
But I know I love you
And that may be all I need to know
Look at these eyes
They've never seen what mattered
Look at these dreams
So beat and so battered
I don't know much
But I know I love you
That may be all I need to know
So many questions still left unanswered
So much I've never broken through
And when I feel you near me
Sometimes I see so clearly
The only truth I've ever known is me and you
Look at this man
So blessed with inspiration
Look at this soul
Still searching for salvation
I don't know much
But I know I love you
And that may be all I need to know
I don't know much
But I know I love you
That may be all I need to know
I don't know much
But I know I love you
That may be all there is to know
Thank you, Peanut ... for always reminding me. I love you, son.
Don't Know Much
written by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Tom Snow© 1980 EMI Blackwood Music Inc
No comments:
Post a Comment