Too often we focus on the stressful side of Autism. I am the first to admit, it is very stressful and at times draining, but I also know there are so many awesome moments and I want to share some of ours with you. I hope they not only make you smile but reflect on how awesome life can be when you have Awesomness in it!
When I sat down to write this post I started to smile just remembering some of the awesome times Peyton has added so much to not only my life, but to my families. Many times he has amazed me with his memory and his ability to remember the smallest details about past expierences, that we did as a family. There are times when we are riding down the road and he will see a place and recall a memory there or somewhere like it…He many times has shocked me with his ability to learn things that most would find difficult.
Several years ago a dear friend gave me a CD for my car of hymns that were all sung in Kurdish, I would play the CD as it was comforting and yet lively, Peyton would listen to the CD and hum along. Then one day he started to sing the words along with the CD! I was very surprised, and asked him how he knew the words, he replied you play it all the time. When we got home, I told my daughter and she asked him if he could sing it without the cd and guess what? He did!! Here was this boy who had a hard time with basic conversations, yet he could memorize an entire song in Kurdish! I dare say many of us would be hard pressed to do that!
There are so many moments when he will remind me of times that he remembers and I have forgotten, these make the times special. As we get so busy in our lives and tend to forget the “little things” or sometimes ignore awesome yet very quiet moments. Peyton views some of these moments that I tend to ignore, as wonderful times. In many ways, I feel as if I have a living journal of the last 15 years of my life, one I can recall even if I don’t remember the details, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.