My husband was rooting around in the silverware drawer as he was searching for a fork.

The reason he was rooting around is that the forks were not in their typical spot in the silverware holder. Meaning the small forks were mixed in with the big ones and so, hence the rooting.

John: Why are all the forks mixed up?

Me: Elizabeth emptied the silverware from the dishwasher today.

John: Smiling…so how are we expected to live like this?!

We both laughed a bit.

We all know that due to her Global Dyspraxia she has to learn every new skill and process them correctly. And that many things can affect her ability to perform a task, even if it is one she already knows, such as anxiety about something else in her life or being too tired or even being upset she is asked to do this job in the first place.

So we get the why of it all.

And after all, most of the time she puts things away, they are in their correct place. Maybe not placed correctly in their right place but they are in their right place none the less.

Example: The clean towels are on the shelf in the bathroom.

Are they folded in any recognizable form sometimes? NO! but they ARE in their right place.

We see other little things that tell us Elizabeth was there.

Such as when the toothpaste tube is completely obliterated in the middle but there is plenty of toothpaste left in the tube below the squeezed middle. Think of a toothpaste tube made to look like the number 8.

Or when the dishes are left out on the counter because she couldn’t fit them into their spots on the shelves…

Or when the remote controls to the television are meticulously placed in the exact same spot by the television, which would seem like a good thing except we are sometimes still wanting to use them and sometimes think we misplaced them only to find them in their original spots.

I think sometimes I use these moments to teach or talk about them with her. Such as how it is important to take your time when you do a job and put things away well.

Or how it is important to ask if we are done with the remotes BEFORE you put them by the television.

We also work on her folding the towels the correct way, which she knows how to do but like all of us, she cuts corners.

With her disorders, it is important to make sure that the information on how to do a skill or task gets inputted ( is that a word?) or processed the correct way the FIRST time. Habits are formed quickly and are so hard to break.

Some of the things she does makes us smile and others makes us root around for the correct fork.

But since we understand the why of it we are able to help and guide her. I think so many many times in these blogs I stress the importance of knowing WHO your child is and HOW they work.

Because knowing this and starting there allows for you, me…US to help our children succeed and help us teach others how they work.

Dyspraxia will not quit so for us, we can’t either. We will teach and support, smile and laugh but be there for her as best we can always.

I wish everyone a peaceful week. Please wear a mask and get a vaccine!

Michele Gianetti author of Elizabeth Believes In Herself.

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