...that Tommy plays so gently and affectionately with his nephew. He may wish sometimes that he had a little brother, but a nephew is almost as good.
...that if we are not available to write things down for Henry (he likes to transcribe favorite sections of movies), he will now do it himself:
(This is the cast of Shark Tale)...that Tommy pats me on the back (literally) and praises my lego creations, telling me that I'm creative. I know that "children learn what they live".
...that Henry wants to have a birthday party this year. This will be his first "friend" party since he was 2 years old.
...that Tommy was uneasy about going to Vacation Bible School without his brother (Henry had summer school that week). A big brother is a big brother, autism or not.
...remembering that we can change minds about autism, one interaction at a time. Last time we visited the dentist, the hygienist cleaning my teeth had gone to speak with the dentist, who was examining Henry. She said "your son is really wiggling in the chair." I explained that he has autism, and that, while it is hard for him to sit still, we are very proud of how far he has come with regard to the dentist, and that in fact he looks forward to our appointments.
"Autism?" she asked, "but he was talking."
I explained that autism is a spectrum and that, while some children do not have much language, others, like Henry, have unusual language patterns. Henry came into my examining room when he was finished, and proceeded to prove my point by talking her ear off.
"What's your name?"
"My name is Henry. I'm 10 years old. On my next birthday, I'll be 11!"
"What are you doing?"
"Are you counting her teeth?"
"Does my mom have any cavities?"
"I could be a dentist, Susan."
and on and on and on...
When I was finished, Henry followed Susan into Bill's examining room, and continued the conversation. She was charmed.
...that Tommy was completely brave when he had to return to the dentist for an extraction.
...that Bill calls me to tell me that Henry let Tommy have a turn on the computer, and could be heard cheering "you're no match for my brother Tommy, Gallaxhar!"
