I Love Our SuperKids!
There is a trailer floating around the internet for a comic book, Raising Dion...about a little boy with Super Powers and his widowed mom. Several of my friends have either tagged me on posts about or sent me the trailer...because the trailer reminds them of SDK and me. What an absolute blessing that so many people see my child and connect him to a story of a mom raising a Super Hero.
Some years ago I met Johnny Earle, Founder of Johnny Cupcakes, and I told him I had a son on the autism spectrum. His immediate response was , "Autism! That's his super power!".
At that time SuperKid was a private name I called SDK. I labeled his backpack with "SuperKid" and the Kindergarten teacher communication journal I sent him to school with daily was called the SuperKid Book...because anything SDK needed help with in school I asked his teacher to write it in the book in the form of a positive message. I would read SDK's SuperKid Book daily and and we would work on whatever was listed for that day... Whether it was learning to pull the sleeves of his jacket outside out...after taking his jacket off in the morning so he could quickly get it on and get in line for recess without additional assistance...or putting a straw through a juice box by himself...or sitting criss cross applesauce...or how to raise his hand to get the teacher's attention...or how to walk in line with his hand by his side...or how to use an inside voice... And a myriad of other things that many kids would generally learn intuitively. SDK and I would practice each day in our home...
I've always told SDK we would practice things so much because we were building up his Super Powers.
So when I met Johnny and he said "Super Powers", I was moved to tears because he saw the world the way I saw the world... In that moment I realized if he could see autism as a Super Power and I saw autism as I Super Power then others could see autism as a Super Power. And I started publicly calling SDK SuperKid. Soon others started referring to SDK through the lens by which I saw my son. I never saw autism as debilitating... My son's beautiful brain worked differently and it was my job, as mom, to step into to his world, figure it out and teach him from that prospective...with each lesson and strategy I develop for and teach to SDK, I am helping My Baby hone his Super Powers.
Now, when people talk to me...even people I am meeting for the first time...they ask me, "How is SuperKid?" And each time I hear someone say "SuperKid" my heart explodes with pride. As of late, I have had parents or friends of parents reach out to me and say..."I have a SuperKid" or "My friend has two SuperKids" ❤ The world and its prospective of diverse learners is slowly changing and I am so grateful that God gave me a small role to play in that forward movement.
Our SuperKids work so hard everyday to do simple tasks that many take for granted. But they keep trying...and trying...until they get it!!! And once they get it...they got it!!! BOOM!!! A new Super Power!!! Then we are on to hone the next Super Power. Sometimes I think it must be exhausting to be SDK...I've never had to work as hard as he does daily for anything. But he lives life with song in his heart and a genuine smile on his face. He is my greatest teacher. ❤
Thank you, Village for recognizing My Baby as a SuperKid. I ask that you join me in celebrating and carving out a space in our hearts and world for all the SuperKids who work so hard everyday honing their SuperPowers. BOOM!!!!⚡POW!!💥BANG!!!⚡BAM!!!💥 #ILoveOurSuperKids#TheyGotThis
