Autism spectrum

I am reading a book right now by Jodi Picoult

called HOUSE RULES

For those of you who are not familiar with Picoult

she writes fiction books regarding issues that

are based around things happening in today's world.

For instance, she wrote MY SISTERS KEEPER

that is now a motion picture.

HOUSE RULES is about a teenager who suffers

from Asperger's syndrome one of those

disorders on what we call the Autism spectrum.

I have always been intrigued by autism but

even more so now that I work in a public school system

that finds myself directly working with these children.

These children are usually super smart.

Kindergartners reading sometimes on a 4th grade level.

Yet what they read is just words they do not understand the words.

They are disconnected from the world as we know it.

Stuck in a level where they are only interested in

what is around them at the minute.

Everything is taken literal to them and simple commands

are either something they can't complete or throws them

into a tail spin. Some recite movie lines and others will not speak

at all. The spectrum is wide with different levels of understanding

different for each child.

I admire all who work with these children.

I admire their parents the most.

The majority of these children do not understand feelings

like pain or love. Their parents give and give

but most do not get hugs and kisses back.

Most of these children do not understand the concept of love.

This is the saddest part of the syndrome for me.

A parent who gives tirelessly, pays for extra learning,

makes special accommodations for the babies they love

but may never get understood as someone who is loved.

I admire these parents so much because not one has

ever showed the pain I know must be involved with

raising these children.

Pray for all those who suffer on the Autism spectrum

and pray for their parents who, in my eyes,

are the true heroes of the world

who teach me exactly what unconditional love is every day.