My boy Michael (Picture and Video)

This is a picture of me with my boy, Michael. Isn't he handsome?



I know that I keep posting videos of my boys, but believe it or not, I do have pictures of my girls, but I just haven't posted them yet.

Okay, rereading that sentence I realized that saying I'm going to post pictures of "my girls" probably didn't come out the way I meant it. You all know I'm talking about pictures of the little girls I feel in love with and not... uh... uh.... you know, THE girls... like... uh... the name of that place where people swear they go just because the hot wings are supposedly fantabulous.

Okay... so, uh.. yeah, let's get back to the point....

Michael is the sole reason I'd planned on going to India. Michael is mostly nonverbal and has autism and Sarah wanted to see if I could do RPM (the therapy we do with Noah) with him. And, of course, I was dying to meet Sarah and see her kids.

And then I get to India... and completely fall apart.

I wasn't prepared for how meeting Michael in person would affect me. That first day all I could think about was how much he reminded me of Noah.

I mean, here I was.... I just waltzed right in with my box of tricks (therapy stuff) thinking I would bring Michael all this "stuff" and work with him and show everyone how smart he is and just... I don't know... ride in there on my white horse and save the day.

Nevermind the fact that it has taken SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS of intensive intervention to get Noah where he is today (and he's still considered severe). And nevermind that Noah lives in a house where his toys and therapy equipment sit out 24/7 for him to use anytime he wants. And nevermind that Noah has a mom who is willing to fight to the death to get him the help he needs.

I was so full of myself and honestly thought I could make a difference in just a few days. What was I thinking?

It was very humbling.

Anyway, the reality is that Michael lives with about 17 other boys and the therapy toys that I brought him can't sit out 24/7 because they'd get broken. Because 17 other children would want to play with them. And because one of the boys at the Angel Home literally takes anything and everything and throws it on the roof.

They have to keep things locked up.

So, Michael wouldn't have access to the stuff I brought. And he wouldn't have constant access to the swing we bought. And there's really not anyone there to do hours upon hours of 1:1 therapy with him because, really, the only person who would advocate for him like that is a mom.

And Michael doesn't have a mom.

And when all those realizations hit me... I just crumbled.

And I told Sarah that I wouldn't be able to work with him while I was there because I couldn't emotionally handle it.

Really nice of me, huh?

In the end, I sucked it up and gave it a try. They brought Michael in from the Boy's Home and I was able to spend a few hours with him... and you know what my biggest regret is? That I didn't spend the whole week with him.

He is fantastic.

Man, I just cannot being to tell you what an amazing boy he is. Now, the RPM therapy that I did basically flatlined b/c 1) I don't speak Telegu and 2) I did everything wrong by showing him all the toys first... which, of course, he didn't want to put down to do academic work.

But he did make a few choices and the point is that I was able to just be with him for awhile.

He loves to be picked up and spun around and around. Oh my, he has the most infectious laugh! And he just seemed - to me at least - really happy to have someone pay attention to him. Kids with autism are so easy to be ignored because they're often content being on their own - and I'm not implying by any means that he's ignored at Sarah's - but he just, I don't know, seemed so happy.

And he remembered me the next day! I have a video of him sitting still and then suddenly rocking back and forth with excitement when I start talking to him.

Really, ya'll, he is awesome. He's so much higher functioning than Noah. And I got him to say a few English words that Sarah's never heard him say before! I really and truly believe that he would be high-functioning and verbal if he was worked with 1:1.

He has sooooooooo much potential.

I definitely plan on going back sometime and can't wait to work with him... properly, this time!

And as far as me thinking that I couldn't make a difference, well, the house sister at the Angel Home saw me with Michael and is now going to set time aside each day for him to swing in the swing and play with some of the spinning toys and do some of the exercises I showed her.

I am so glad I let go of my ego and just worked with him. It wasn't great and I probably looked like I didn't know what I was even doing.....but his house sister saw something out of it that got her excited.... and praise God, that's what really matters.

Here's a video of Michael when we put him the hammock swing that we bought with everyone's donations. To say he had a blast is an understatement... :)