Special needs children and adults
We have a ‘special needs’ child in
our family. We’re not unique – just about every family I know has a child (or
adult) who needs extra care and attention. It’s not something we wish or hope
for – in fact, it’s something we fear. And yet, when it happens, life-changing events
make us sit-up and realise how lucky we really are.
We recently celebrated Easter and,
as usual, enjoyed family gatherings. Our youngest granddaughter, nearly two,
has struggled through major setbacks since her premature birth. Today she has
two shunts that drain fluid from her brain into her little stomach and she is
visually challenged. Yet, our little
granddaughter is thriving and, in many ways, behaving the way a nearly-two-year
old should. This is not only thanks to medical intervention, but also thanks to
love. The crises of her operations, Intensive Care and recovery did something
special for the family – it brought us together and made her mom and dad and
two siblings, extra-strong and extra-resilient.
There was a time in my life when I
worked at a home for mentally and physically disabled children and adults. It
was the hardest thing I ever had to do and sadly, within a short time, I had to
move on and away from an institution where, quite literally, helpless people had
been abandoned by their families and were left at the mercy of care-takers.
At the time I also interviewed a
family who had a little girl who was a ‘micro-cheph’ – in other words, she was
born with a very small head and under-developed brain. Her parents were told
that she would not live beyond the age of five, she would never walk, talk or
see. Today she is a teenager, taller than her mom, able to walk and hold a
conversation. I put this down to her loving family who give her constant love
and attention.
I do understand that there comes a
time when special-needs children and adults need special-care facilities – a
home or a school where their needs are catered for, where they can mature and
develop special skills and where they can be looked after, yet enjoy some
independence. People who work in these places are angels who have answered a
calling, and are prepared help these people with love and understanding. Their
families are fully supportive and look at the home or the school as an
extension of their family where they can be helped.
Too often we get caught-up in a
world that’s ‘me, me, me’. Like a silly dog chasing its tail, it gets us
nowhere. Special-needs children and adults who are trapped in their own little
worlds are so incredibly open to receiving from others. In turn, they give us
such joy in return for the smallest interaction – a smile, a hug, something to
eat or drink, a blanket to keep them warm.
My granddaughter, with a happy
smile on her face and in beautiful blue eyes, has taught me not to shy away
from daunting challenges but to face them, fearlessly and head-on. In many
ways, she has given to us, more than we could ever imagine.
