Today is World Autism Awareness Day. All over the world landmarks, businesses, universities and households will be lighting it up blue to raise awareness for this epidemic. Yes it is an EPIDEMIC. The U.S. CDC just released new figures showing that 1 in 88 children will be diagnosed with autism. Can you imagine if a report came out that said 1 in 88 children will be diagnosed with leukemia or brain tumours? Can you imagine the outrage? So WHY…WHY aren’t people as outraged about a neurological disorder? I need that one explained to me.
But today isn’t a day to bitch and complain. Today is a day to celebrate the ones that you love who are living with autism. Today I celebrate my nephew Scotty. Scotty – the pre-teen wonder.
When Scotty was diagnosed with autism, I was just on the learning curve about the spectrum. But I can tell you – I wasn’t sure he’d be able to…
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* Show emotion or bond with people. Well that’s BS…he loves his mom and dad..his teachers…and the rest of us. He and Will have a special bond and it’s growing more by the day. The other weekend my sister and I had a tea while the boys played upstairs…together. You might take this for granted. We do not.
* Deal with large groups. While Scotty doesn’t search them out, and isn’t a fan…(truly, neither am I), could a kid afraid of groups be the MC at their Christmas Show and have an audience of people eating out of the palm of their hands? Not likely.
* Ride a horse, master a bike, shoot 30 hoops in a row, fly high on a trampoline, play the drums…and on…and on…and on….
* Be over the moon to meet his heroes? To have heroes? (listen for Murray Wiggle saying something hilarious for the parents…:)).
What am I getting at? Well, when Scotty was diagnosed – autism was a mystery to me. Since then, I’ve educated myself about the warning signs and research going into finding a cure. But autism remains a mystery to me…and to everyone else. No one (no…not even Jenny McCarthy) knows what causes it or what can cure it. So all we can do is raise awareness and funds to go into that research.
What do I know about autism? I know that my nephew lives with it every day. That my sister and Scotty’s dad live with it every day. That I think about it every time that Will does something that a child with autism might not be able to do.
What does Will know about autism? Well – he says that Scotty is a “very, very special boy”. I don’t think that has a freaking thing to do with his autism – it’s just what he thinks of his cousin. And he’s totally right.
So Light It Up Blue today and all through this month. Learn about autism, make yourself aware, donate to the cause…get involved. It IS an epidemic.
You lost me after ‘pre-teen’ .. god help me.
Thanks for the post. The Will and Scotty duo will be a force.
Le sigh. We need advancements here, and FAST! These kids are growing, and the “assistance” we have in place isn’t nearly enough, as far as I’m aware…
Good post, lady!
As always, a great article Sara! Very well written!
I have never been so proud in my life to be working for Autism Speaks Canada. I have been here almost 2 months and have been priviledged to meet amazing kids just kids like Scotty and equally amazing families! The absolute best career choice ever! Let’s all work together to find the missing piece of the puzzle, and light it up blue people!!