When we walk out our door I’m on full alert, always. Our house has a porch, with steps that leads to a walk, with more steps. These steps cause my heart to race. Owen can walk up, and down steps perfectly fine, when he wants to, and when he is paying attention, but when he is trying to see the world in a different way, with his eyes squinted, and his ears covered, stairs become an instant source of concern. If you were to put an octopus in a fun house that has a monkey riding sidesaddle, and he’s trying to put on shoes, that is about as close as you can come to what it’s like. Owen’s arms are in every direction, his shoes slightly skate off the edge of the step so he clomps down on the next step, with me trying to hold his arm almost upwards to keep some kind of balance for both of us. And he can walk the stairs fine. I’ve practiced, and practiced with him. I’ve taken him to doctors, talked to therapists, read those how to books, and yet here we are slip-sliding away on the stairs. We got to the bus stop, and Owen was delighted. He was so excited that the few cars that passed got a big “tell them hi” from Owen, yelling across the street as the drove past. He saw a light in the distance, and he immediately started moving towards it. This meant him taking off down the street. He only got about four steps in front of me, but he easily would have run towards it. We had the talk about watching were he was going, and that he couldn’t go in the street like that, but, must sip my coffee to keep the tears away, he doesn’t even understand the boundaries of where the street, and the sidewalk meet. The world is one big open playground for Owen. This is so emotional for me. My baby has no understanding about the rules of the world. He was so happy when he saw the bus come around the corner. He couldn’t wait until he was on it. The joy in his eyes is something I wish everyone could experience. Truly amazing. Sometimes the simply pleasures in life are exactly what we need. Find happiness in your world. Share your joy, celebrate even the tiniest of victories, and know that today is the first day of the rest of your life. Smiles to all and donut daze!
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