Posted at 09:28 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Posted at 09:32 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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I’m home sick today. The side of my neck is swollen & sore. I’m tucked into the couch, watching the Today Show, when Harold calls. “Evan has to have his enrollment papers in today. It’s District Count day,” he tells me. Great. My plan was to do the paperwork tomorrow, when I dropped Evan off for speech. We debate about who will do this task. I decide to go as Harold has meetings booked all day & if he has to rearrange his schedule, that means someone else must do the same.
Posted at 09:34 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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His newest choice? Asian-influenced! We were looking through a Brylane Home catalog when we came across this set. Ev fell in love with it. "Yeah, man! Japanese! This is it!" he exclaimed happily. We looked at several other options but he really wanted his original choice. So we'll order the comforter set & hit the grandparents up for donations for the rug. (I drew the line at the hand-painted TV cabinet!)
We have always had a policy that Evan could have his room decorated however he liked. He has always had very specific taste in clothes, decorations, music, etc. This is a normal and wonderful thing so we always try to defer to his taste when possible. Always the snappy dresser, I think he would dress in Tommy Hilfiger & Ralph Lauren if we had the money!
One of the great joys of being a parent is watching our son's personality & tastes develop. When he was a baby, I often wondered if he would be like the (few) people with Down's that I had seen: sloppy dressers, bad haircuts, dull. Now I realize that those people were the product of an old way of thinking about those with mental disabilities. It was the line of thought that said there was no point in educating, mentally stimulating, or exposing them to much of the outside world. This would lead anyone to a general, overall dullness of course!
I am glad that we have had the resources & desire to expose Evan to things like art, music, literature, other cultures, nature, God, travel, love, acceptance, and all the other things that help make for an educated and interesting human being. This is a kid who loves sushi & air travel, for Pete's sake! He has, and continues, to surprise & delight us with the person he is becoming.
So let the decorating commence!
Posted at 09:37 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Posted at 09:38 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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We are about to embark on a new leg of our journey with Evan. He will turn 18 in January, which means he will legally be an adult. Privacy laws being what they are, we have decided we need to seek some form of legal guardianship of him. So I made a call I hated today. I called a lawyer.
Please understand that I have spent most of my life avoiding contact with lawyers. They are expensive and speak a foreign language. If you ask them to translate that language, they charge you money. It’s a vicious circle! The gentleman I called will hopefully have some compassion on us when it comes to fees. He has a 20-something son who has cerebral palsy, so he is at least familiar on a personal level with the road we have to go down. This guy is also very nice. He was the legal council for the university I used to work for & he and I had a decent working relationship. We will meet with him next month to discuss all the grisly particulars: full guardianship, partial guardianship, financial guardianship. It’s a virtual Chinese menu full of choices to make, none of which I find particularly appetizing.
I am the type of person who always wanted to get A’s on my tests. (I’m sure my parents will be shocked to hear this!) But, really, I was always disappointed when I didn’t get everything right. The thought of having to make such a big decision with long-lasting ramifications for Evan is very daunting. We will pray a lot and trust that we will know which option to choose when it is presented to us.
I have mentioned before that when you have a child with special needs, grief is something that pops its ugly head up from time to time. Small things can trigger it as can big life events. Yeah, this is one of those big life events. Yup. It is. During times like this, when I realize that we will actually have to stand before a judge & say, “Yes, our son, our only child, is incompetent,” I remember what our friend Mark said when Evan was born. “Those who are small in the eyes of man, stand tall before God for all eternity.” I remind myself yet again that life on this earth is short. Eternity is what counts. Evan, who loves God will all his heart, will spend Eternity with no hindrances, knowing nothing but joy.
“God makes His people strong and He gives them peace.” Psalm 29:11 (Message Version)
Posted at 09:42 PM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Why do we wrestle with the issue of respecting authority? Respect is something we can give to someone or withhold from them. It is our choice. You can’t force someone to respect you, no matter how hard you try. Either they will or they won’t.
Posted at 06:42 AM in Posted originally on my MSN Spaces blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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