autismdadinthe603

The days of the cute kindergartener vanished. The little boy who had the bow tie and suspenders beamed but picture has now faded and though it’s still cute, it has been put on the shelf and is a distant memory.

We tend to hold onto the past as we knew the day would come. The day that Sawyer would feel left out and notice that others around him aren’t him. The reality check continues to be socially as his peers to no fault of them have lapped him in a race that he isn’t ready to run.

As Sawyer spent time with my wife, Kellie, he shared that “he is lonely and has no friends.” Now this isn’t exactly the case. He does have friends but they aren’t with him during the day when social opportunities are most available such as lunch and recess.

This like many things this year is tough to digest. It’s never easy to hear the hard. It’s never easy to listen and not necessarily have the answers. You want to fix it but this may not be broken.

Sawyer right now reminds me of Buzz and Woody from Toy Story. He’s the beloved character that has been outgrown by his friend, Andy. However, Andy hasn’t forgotten him. The friendship has changed as he has grown up whereas his keepsake pals are stuck in time. Sawyer is still the second grader whereas his peers are knocking on puberty.

Sawyer is knocking on the door from a birds eye view but like Buzz and Woody, he still wants to play like he used to. He has those moments with some but it is few and far between.

Helping him navigate it as a family is not easy. However, you have to work through the hard because there was a time like when Andy in Toy Story moved on but then came Bonnie. So the lonely might evolve into something that might not replace the past but brighten the present and future.

💙