Check out this kid, Clay Marzo. Clay has Aspergers and lives in Maui. He wasn't diagnosed until he was 18. Before that, his family couldn't figure out what it was about Clay that made it difficult for him to deal with social situations.

It got so bad, that his dad and older brother basically wrote him off, thinking he was a stoner slacker that was unwilling to turn is amazing talent into a profitable business enterprise. Clay no longer talks to his dad or brother, which is sad.

His amazing talent?

Surfing!

Look what this kid can do on wave.....



Here is a trailer for a documentary about Clay called Just Add Water...

this was a great piece that was done on the news last night

http://www.cbsnews.com/vi...&tag=mncol

Yesterday I told my son's Doctor about the people I've met on this thread and the how thoughtful you have been. He said he has seen the documentary on HBO, purplekisses, and believes as well they will become available for purchase. I started coming to the org to escape, but decided to join because I had far more in common with some than I ever realized. Thank you all for being here and please stay in touch. Sandra

Beautiful children.

Thanks for starting this thread this year. Last year was my turn. That was 1 month into the diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome for my son. What an interesting year it has been for me. My son never changed. I did.
Families that are blessed with special needs children can teach a lot to others. This poem was shared with me about what it is like to have a child with special needs-

WELCOME TO HOLLAND
by
Emily Perl Kingsley.

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this.....
When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland

rnljs said:

rn glad to hear from u i remember talking to u on the thread last year about ur son and the new road u were taking with him... that poem so nails it on the head that is for sure... we all have different paths that we have to take and usually not the one that we set out to take but we do get to where we want to go.. sometimes not when we wanted to get there but we do.. we must keep pushing to get the word out and the more that we can the more funding the researchers can get to do what they need to do and parents can get what is needed for their children.. they are smarter then we think its just finding the right path for them..

Elle85n09 said:

sandra i am so glad... there are ups n downs here but in all u will find those that may be going through the same thing as u are.. i have always considered the org a community.. there are times when everyone is on the same page and ban together to come n help those n need and times where things can be lill upside down but n the end there are those here that u will call a "friend" and may even meet n person.. i have met some great people here all over the world i wouldn't change it for anything... glad u feel that u can open up here

purplekisses said:

I love that poem. Have it printed in my office.

I fully agree with you. There are so many things we are not really aware of, although we could do so much to help...

HowComeYouDontCallme said:

Those are very cute pictures!










(And I adore the medical hologram. "Please state the nature of the medical emergency.")

HowComeYouDontCallme said:

He's beautiful .
[Edited 4/26/10 20:55pm]