Cotton Candy Kisses
"That was great, I thought I was gonna throw up!"...that was Matthew's reaction to riding the scrambler ride thing at the county fair tonight. I looked over and saw an almost 8 year old laughing hysterically. ~Pure Joy~ captured in my memory forever. I looked around and wondered if all of the other mothers there were realizing (like me) that these moments won't last forever. I am so grateful and so honored that God has allowed me to be Matthew's mother. He is such a blessing to me.
Matthew is autistic. Well, he has autistic tendencies, or as others have put it-- he is on the autism spectrum....all that means to other 7 & 8 year olds is that he's different. And he is.
I watched Matthew tonight yell to get some of his classmates attention, (he just wanted to say hi) and they rolled their eyes and waved as if someone was making them. It broke my heart, because I know this is just the beginning.
Matthew repeats things (a lot), he can't eat the food that everyone else can, he's very smart, he stutters when he's nervous or excited, he talks about Jesus everywhere he goes, and he flaps his hands when he's had too much going on (to calm himself down.) He doesn't quite fit in.
And I could not possibly be more proud of him.
Matthew's response to the kids that didn't seem to have time for him? No pouting, no being upset, no anger. He simply said, Oh, they must be busy..it sure looks like they're having fun! And he jogged off to find another little friend from church, which he hung out with all night.
His resilience amazes me, and comforts me. A reaction from friends that would have caused me to twirl into a pity party and eat a deep fried snickers (which I did not by the way) didn't phase him. Amazing.
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