So as Michael gets home today from school and I wish him a Happy Spring Break.
I started thinking that very soon Michael will be starting his basketball training and games. We did not know that he was planning on this until just a bit ago, so we have a bit of planning time ahead of us, don’t we?. Oh, and those games will be on the weekends. About an hour away. Every weekend from Mid April until the end of May.
And I started thinking about Elizabeth and what will she be doing when we are gone. Because there will be a few times that John will be on call and I will need to take Michael.
So where will she be or go?
Prior to COVID, she had her work, a significant time working with her tutor on the weekends and other activities. Some things have come back to a slight degree and others not so much.
So that leaves the question….what will Elizabeth wish to do?
Will she want to go to games? Probably, but not every one.
Will she want to stay home? I am sure she can but not everytime.
Will we be able to arrange for a friend to hang out with her while we are gone? Probably but not always.
So this puts us in a situation that I can remember from years before…called Oh-No-Now-We-To-Figure-This-Out-In-A Hurry. Part two of that title goes something like….If we only had more time we could get things pretty well set.
So while Michael will be excited, we will be that as too we will also be busy putting some pieces into place!
This got me thinking of the importance of living in the moment but keeping an eye a bit ahead…just a bit into the future.
When Elizabeth was younger I learned that just because I wanted Elizabeth to be in a certain camp, when she was younger, did not make it so. Especially when they filled up all the slots MONTHS ago.
Or happily deciding which therapy and time we FINALLY decided on to learn that all that debating lost us the opportunity to pick any.
Maybe one friend or companion is just amazing but when something happens in their life and they cannot be with your child, what happens then? I learned that having 2 or more is the ticket.
I have learned alot in the 23 years on this journey with Elizabeth and have made some really really bad decisions and some really good ones. I have learned from both. For those who don’t know, Elizabeth is my daughter with special needs. She has SPD ( Sensory Processing Disorder) and Global Dyspraxia. Both are intricate and make life a great deal of hard work for her each day.
So will all this in mind, maybe now is a good time to think about penciling a plan for summer. Summer is actually is that things just a little bit ahead.
I know! Summer already?
But yes!
Just that bit ahead helps.
COVID is still a factor so that requires some thought as well.
What therapies are you thinking about? Who do you need to call?
What activities? Are they up and running? When do you need to call by? Who do you call?
Who do you think will be with your child as a companion, if that is in your plans.
I have learned one great big lesson in this journey and it is that I like having time on my side and not feeling the time crunch at all. Not always doable but I have to say, I certainly try for this!
So as we sort of scramble for our schedule in April and May, I also offer that the need to look ahead is real. And the gift of time feels wonderful.
I wish everyone a peaceful week and please keep wearing your masks.
Michele Gianetti author of Elizabeth Believes in Herself
