Before I was a special parent…
I thought RETT SYNDROME was something you got from
Watching too many re-runs of Gone with The Wind
That is, after you recovered from Scarlett Fever
Before I was a special parent…
PT meant part-time
OT meant overtime
BRACES were something you wore on your teeth.
And a WIDE GAIT was attached to my fence
Before I was a special parent…
I actually had a savings account
I didn’t know that I should have invested heavily
In Scott paper towels, Attends, Velcro and Applesauce
Before I was a special parent…
RIGIDITY was my anal-retentive boss
SELF-INJURIOIUS BEHAVIOR was what I did on a night at the casino
MOOD SWINGS came only with PMS
And VALIUM was used by high strung socialites
Before I was a special parent…
I thought BUTTONS went on your blouse, not your belly
GENES were labeled Levi or Guess
And MUTATIONS were confined to the Incredible Hulk
Before I was a special parent…
I thought the IRSA was the IRS Association
HANDWRINGING was what you did after an audit
SEIZURE was what they did when you failed
And RESIDENTIAL PLACEMENT was a jail term
Before I was a special parent…
STATUS was something you earned, not dreaded
And when you got it, MOBILITY was usually upward
A FINE MOTOR ACTIVITY was taking the Chevy thru the car wash
And a GROSS MOTOR MOVEMENT was the universal one-finger salute
Before I was a special parent…
VACANT SPELLS were related to real estate
SPASTICITY was a good Jerry Lewis movie
The IDEA was just a bright little thought
And GUILT came from something I did, not from something I didn’t do
Before I was a special parent…
BALANCE referred to my checkbook
CIRCULATION was about my hometown newspaper
HYPERVENTILATION was limited to Rover’s greeting
And CURVATURE was very sexy
Before I was a special parent…
COMMUNICATION was about saying all the right things
IEP was pronounced IPE
INCLUSION meant tax added
And IMPACTION was a speedway crash
Before I was a special parent…
My other children were called kids, Not SIBLINGS
They played together, not INTERACTED
And my husband’s 3 most important words before drifting off to sleep were
I Love You Instead of DID SHE POOP?
Before I was a special parent…
I thought shoes with VELCRO were for lazy people
ADAPT meant telling someone to get over it already
And ASPIRATION meant ambition.
BUT ALSO
Before I was a special parent…
I didn’t know that SORROW never leaves you where it found you
I didn’t know that such unbridled JOY could come from heartbreak
I didn’t know that my child would be my TEACHER
I didn’t know the meaning of UNCONDITIONAL LOVE
I didn’t realize that the little stuff is really THE BIG STUFF
I didn’t know how well someone could COMMUNICATE without words
I didn’t know that when God sizes us up, he measures the HEART, not the head.
I didn’t know that milestones are not as important as SMILESTONES
I didn’t know that my child would TOUCH the world not from what she has done, but from what she cannot do
I didn’t know the POWER of her powerlessness.
I didn’t know that I had so much to learn.
by Kathy Hunter
Copyright 2005
