When parents send their kids off to school, they hope that the other kids will be able to see their amazing child the way they see them, and hope that their quirks attract friends instead of deter them.
New Jersey dad Bob Cornelius always knew his autistic son Christopher was a little different than the kids in his class, and was crushed when he never mentioned making any friends at school despite being 11 years old already. However, he never realized how bad the situation was until he went to back to school night.
While at back to school night, the hallways were decorated with the student’s projects. When he got to his son’s poster, he quickly snapped a photo of it, however, when he got back home later that night, he took a closer look at the questionnaire and realised that when his son was prompted to list his friends, he bluntly stated ‘No one.’
Bob had noticed the difference between his older son who frequently had sleepovers with friends and Christopher, who never had anyone to invite over, however, he never realised his little boy was aware of his lack of friends. “Until Thursday, I didn’t know how aware he was of this divide, as he does not often talk about his peers… Mostly, I suppose, because I had never seen him put in down on paper. For the first time, it was staring me in the face,” Bob said.
“Never have five letters cut so deep, and they weren’t even directed at me . . . it was just an overly simplistic statement that spoke volumes,” Bob wrote on Facebook. “And I don’t have a solution. I don’t have an answer. The reality is that I have to rely on the compassion of others to be incredibly understanding in order just to sit next to him, attempt to engage him, and make him feel included.”
However, no one ever sits down with their kids and teaches them to be compassionate and include others who are a little different, which is why the crushed dad decided to share his son’s story. “And it’s not their fault…. that’s the saddest part,” said of the other kids who excluded his son. “They were clearly not taught to embrace and accept the differences of others… I don’t mean to imply that parents that don’t have this conversation with their kids are bad people, but only that somewhere in between working, soccer practice, and homework, it never occurred to them to have this particular conversation.”
“The only solution I can come up with is to share this with you and ask that you have a conversation with your kids. Please tell them that children with special needs understand far more than we give them credit for. They notice when others exclude them. They notice when they are teased behind their back (a lot of times “behind their back” is right in front of them because they think the ‘different’ child doesn’t understand). But mostly they are very much in tune when they are treated differently from everyone else. Trust me when I tell you this hurts them. Even if it’s not obvious to you and me.”
How would you react if your child answered a question about friends like this? Let us know in the comments below, and please SHARE this with friends and parents on Facebook to spread Bob’s message.
[Featured image: Facebook/Bob Cornelius]
Autistic Little Boy Has Crushing Answer To Homework Question is an article from: LifeDaily