I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned this to you guys before, but Sara, my lovely wife, has Asperger’s Syndrome. She came to me yesterday, and after informing me that today is World Autism Awareness day, asked me to dedicate a post to it. Now how could I possibly say no to my sweet loving wife?
Everyday I wake up with Sara is a struggle. While I usually wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I cannot always say the same for Sara because I usually have to kick her in the butt to get her out of bed, and remind her of simple things on a daily basis. Things that some of us just do. Sometimes, it could be turning off the stove, and other times, it could be a case of unplugging her curling iron. She is sometimes a bit scatter brained.
I have no problem with this, because I love my wife, and I have my own struggles with short term memory. When I do these things, she can get quite upset and argumentative, focusing on one aspect of something I’ve said instead of the whole picture.
This can lead to a whole new set of arguments, as I try to get her to absorb the entire subject, and she wants to focus on one step that seems out of line. It’s so interesting living with someone who’s such a concrete thinker, when I am such an abstract thinker.
I’ve been doing a lot of inspirational writing lately, we’re on day 55 after all, and I’ve had a few people ask me how I can do it. How can I maintain the upbeat attitude that I seem to convey with most of my posts? How can I find something to write about every single morning?
It’s all because of Sara. For all her faults, for all the things I have to do to help her, she is the brightest light in my life. Loving and caring like no other woman I’ve been with, I have watched Sara repeatedly sacrifice the things she wants in order to help others without a second thought. I’ve seen her take a treat that she bought for herself, spot a homeless man all the way across the parking lot, and walk over to give him her special treat. It may not seem like much, but I see so much of that missing from the world nowadays.
Sara has been so many things to me, but a constant companion and rock is the best way to describe her.
For all her faults, Sara shows me the best side of humanity everyday. She doesn’t think about herself first, she thinks of others. She opened my eyes to the differences between people, and yet how similar we all are. I continuously watch Sara struggle to be kind to herself, yet spread her compassion to the world. Maybe one day, she’ll learn to turn that compassion towards herself a little more.
When we first got together, Sara was very much an isolationist. She hadn’t left the house by herself in almost two years, and when she was home, she spent most of her time in her room.
Then her mother joined a Certified Nurses Assistant class, and Sara was intrigued. In one short month, her curiosity took her from being someone who would NEVER go outside alone, to someone who would walk to the store on her own. I have watched her grow from someone who struggled to put two words together when speaking face to face, into someone who voices her opinion as loudly and fiercely as anyone I know.
Sara is easily one of the bravest people I know. I hope one day she sees what I see, and she learns to accept what life has given her, and see she has gifts that some people will never understand. But that’s a battle for another day.
In short, my woman with Asperger’s Syndrome is a warrior. I watch her persevere everyday, and see the small improvements every day. Sara is what gives me inspiration, because I’m watching her evolve right before my very eyes.
Sumo Sized Ginger 