Ode (or owed) to my friends

Right now what I have on my mind before the long weekend has nothing to do with Memorial Day or the plans I have for the weekend or myself for that matter. It has to do with some of the amazing people I'm friends with either in person or thru our blogs.



They are:

Jippy - http://jippyjabber.blogspot.com/ my BFF who is an amazing writer, artist, mother, friend, and always has something to say worth reading. She teaches me something new every day.

Just Joy - http://justajoy.blogspot.com/ a bright & passionate blogger friend w/a heart of gold

Richard - http://mediapython.com/blog/2007/05/25/small-breakthroughs a new blogger friend I just happened upon who shares an amazing breakthrough w/Ben

Chag - http://cynicaldad.blogspot.com/index.html he shares this interesting analogy about parents discovering their child has autism http://www.aboutautism.org.uk/holland.htm



The thing that brings these special people to mind today is their connection to Autism/Asperger's and what each of them is doing to contribute and deal with these disorders on a daily real basis.

• Jippy is a mother of an autistic son Zachery. She's done so much good work with her son since she discovered he was autistic. He is 13 now and is a great communicator because of her patience and diligence. Zachary told me he was sad the other day because he didn't get the 4 stuffed animals he wanted at the zoo. It was wonderful to hear him express his feelings. He's becoming an incredible young man!

• Just Joy is a young woman about to embark on college life in which she'll be using music as therapy for autistic children and adults. What a significant impact she'll have on our friends and family members w/Autism, and how lucky those will be who get to work with her. Such compassion and endurance as she's stood strong to get into a good school so she can follow her dreams to help others!

• Richard is a father figure to Ben who he's cared for and loved since he was born. Ben has Asperger's which I don't know much about at all but he's touched me with his love for Ben and his desire to always treat Ben with respect. He's teaching Ben new things, and because of that, Ben is conquering his disorder in big ways. He's an inspiration to me as a parent. Such a strong individual.

• Chag is a father of two who I began reading to get a man's perspective on fatherhood. He's a stay at home dad and has some really funny (in that sarcastic kinda way) stories about his kids, wife, and their life. He just found out that his little boy has autism. I'm more of a lurker on Chag's blog really, but I like reading his take on things, plus he lives in NC and I like being able to connect to there because I miss it. This is a tough time for Chag and although I don't have children w/autism or any other special needs or circumstances, I empathize with what he's going through. My thoughts are with him and his family.

Today my heart is filled with gratefulness for having these 4 awesome individuals in the world & in my life . It's filled me with something that I can't quite put my finger on... something that makes me feel in touch with the Grander, with a Greater presence, and something that makes it so clear to me that there are much more significant things going on in the world. Things that make me realize how trivial some of the worries I have are... And that's a good thing because anyone who knows me knows I worry over some pretty small stuff!



So here's to my 4 friends... (picture a large mug of beer being raised here, and me toasting you, and then all of us guzzling it down! :)



Hugs!