How to change a life

There are moments in your life when you have a singular opportunity to make ripples into waves and waves into true and lasting change. Last night, was one of these moments.

A friend of mine, a fellow autism mom, organized a musical festival in her community to raise awareness and money for autism programming in our corner of the Midwestern cornfields. And of course living in the Midwest, means living with some seriously weird weather. So while our wonderfully organized outdoor music festival turned into a scene from a Jim Cantore Disaster special on The Weather Channel, we were lucky to have an indoor venue to switch to. Our organizer and glue holding us together, Cassie Wheeler, handled the gale force winds with grace and optimism. And while Ewan was lecturing me on the basis of cloud rotation as we huddled in the mall, the night turned around and even the generally music hating Ewan was spotted on the dance floor.

Nights like last night often seem like just a drop in the bucket in relation to the depth and magnitude of the issue at hand, especially with something as complex and common as autism. Yet there’s a reason why the proverb ‘A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,’ is a timeless statement. Changing the world we live in to make room for our autistic brethren begins with a single night. Changing the way we see autism begins with just a single connection to a child. Changing the tone we speak the name autism begins with one breath.

For me, I made a connection with a child that I hadn’t yet found a way to forge. Last night, Cassie’s son Elijah found his way to my lap where he sang his way into my heart. This often elusive and remote child found a way to communicate through his eyes, his song, and his soul. A moment I will carry with me and think of when I see the child who seems unreachable, the problem seems unsolvable, the issue too complex.

Find your moment today. Make that connection you thought you couldn't. See autism in a whole new light.

Thank you Cassie for making our moment work. Thank you Vivian for raising some money for a great cause. Thank you Laura and Matthew for creating the coolest games for our children (and someday I want my own Plinko game). Thank you Shelly, Brian, Teresa, Jeff, Trina, and Julie for getting out and supporting the whole enchilada. And thank you Kenny for sharing your wife while she threw herself into making the event so successful. Thank you to everyone who braved the storms and took a moment to put autism first.