My Biggest Adventure and Blessing

I believe that each of us can have more than one journey in a lifetime. I have, and I am still on one that changed me as a person.

In 2005 my eighth grandchild was born, a boy.  Every grandchild is a blessing, and every grandchild can bring new adventures and a different perspective on life. However, my grandson Corbin changed my life and our family’s lives forever. 

Corbin brought us all into the world of Autism.  The diagnosis came at age 3, and we all plunged ourselves into research and trying to find the perfect help for Corbin. 

He did not speak many words for a long time, but he could recognize the Alphabet.  I would say a letter, and he could point to the correct letter at age two.  But, not being able to talk and many other issues posed problems for daycare for his parents.  So, at 57, I retired to take care of my grandson, Corbin.  And, I never regretted a minute of it.

If you are not familiar with Asperger’s (now incorporated into the Autism Spectrum), it is indeed a spectrum.  No two children, teens, or adults are the same, so the following description is only specifically about Corbin.

“Corbin struggled with verbalization until age four. However, now he talks endlessly, sometimes even to himself.  And usually about his latest focus on a subject that he has become an expert. His expertise has ranged from dinosaurs (knowing the correct scientific name by sight) to professional wrestling (can name every Royal Rumble winner from the beginning until the current winner) to now, Metal music, and every sub-genre under that topic. He is rigid with schedules and time management and activities.  He cannot visit me except on Friday, and we eat lunch at 11:00, have tea and cookies at 2:00 and dinner at 5:00, and bedtime is 9:00.  He is gifted.  His memory and recall of many things are amazing. He also has a vocabulary that most adults do not have. Yet, he does not understand sarcasm or jokes, and he understands things in a literal way.”

He has leaped hurdles, and he is learning his strengths and shortcomings.  But don’t we all?  He learns and understands with a different way of processing, and to me, that is more normal than any so-called normalcy in this world.  My favorite saying is, “Normal is a setting on a dryer.”

He is blessed to have the most amazing parents and sisters, and that is why he has come so far and become such an amazing young man! 

So, as I sit here looking at Corbin and wondering how the two-year-old I retired to take care of has come to be this handsome, over six foot, encyclopedia on metal music, guiding me through another adventure! 

He has shown me how to be a better person.  I tell everyone that, and it is true!  Corbin has taught me to love unconditionally and to live my life with compassion and with a passion for what I love.  God knew we needed each other!

Greatest Teacher

Boundless love

Created our bond.

My life transformed,

and his daily accomplishments

helped me admire

his uncommon way of learning (teaching).

 Great joy erupted in my heart

With each change, each hurdle,

each victory.

My vision widened,

and my spirit opened.

I am blessed with

the greatest teacher of my life.

My grandson.