As we enter World Autism Month, I am excited to share more about my boy with you. He is the reason our little shop, Little Rebels with a Cause exists, and he is a constant reminder that every single person I encounter is so much more than meets the eye, and maybe he will remind you, too.

We share his challenges, progress, joy and everything in between because it isn’t enough for people to just know that autistic people exist.  We want the world to understand the vastness of this spectrum/sphere, including the behaviors, abilities, needs, challenges, and beauty in every single person who is autistic.  

We want people to learn about and celebrate differences.  When someone looks, sounds, smells, and behaves differently than you, how wonderful of an opportunity you have to learn from them!

When you meet someone like my boy, whose brain may work differently than yours, it may take some time and patience to understand the paradox that is his life. How someone as wild and free as the wind can also feel as caged as a bird; with words, thoughts, and feelings often trapped inside of him.

How he needs predictability and order like his sandwich cut a certain way, the same clothes daily, and to constantly see his schedule, but this same boy loves speed, spinning, and falling just to the edge of out of control.  I think all of this is how he feels safe but also feels ALIVE.  

I spent a lot of time trying to untangle all the contradictions inside of this sweet boy, like it had to be one way or another. It doesn’t. He is not something to be untangled or fixed, just understood, supported, and included.  

This blue-eyed boy finds JOY everywhere, and the best part is, he helps others see it too. I hope you get the chance to know him, or someone as uniquely wonderful.