Friday, April 14, 2006

Layout for Autism Awareness Month


April is Autism Awareness month. And here is my layout about Autism. I had been saving this little essay for some time now. When people ask what it is like to have a child with a disability I show them this wonderful passage. I knew I wanted to do a layout with it because it puts into words what I have always felt in my heart but am unable to express.




Journaling: When you are going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip – to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum, the Michelangelo David, the gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It’s all very exciting. After months of eager anticipation the day finally arrives. You pack your bags, and off you go. Several hours later the plane lands. The flight attendant comes in and says, “Welcome to Holland.”
“Holland?!?” you say, “What do you mean Holland? I signed up for Italy! I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.” But there has been a change in the flight plan. They’ve landed in Holland, and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven’t taken you to a horrible disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place. So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met. It’s just a different place. It’s slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you’ve been there for awhile and you catch your breath, you look around… and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills…and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy…and they’re all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say, “Yes that is where I was supposed to go. That’s what I planned.”
And the pain of that will never, ever go away…because the loss of that dream is a very, very significant loss. But…if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the special, the very lovely things…about Holland.


Source: Emily Perie Kingsley
From a Reprint in “Family Resource Committee” Newsletter

15 comments:

Melissa said...

wow such meaningful journaling-wonderful LO!

Photocat said...

Gut wrenching beautiful Aparna... You could not hear the deep sigh after I read it...
Autisme cuts off, literally...
I wish you strength for your stay in Holland.

Anonymous said...

Well... err... maybe you can get to Italy by train, while you're living in "Holland" ;) We always look for clever and joyfull tourists.

B said...

I LOVE THIS!

Kristal said...

Oh my, this brought a tear to my eye. I wish you many happy travels in Holland. God bless you.

corinne5 said...

ok you need to come by my house than since I life in Holland! love your lo!

corinnexxx

corinne5 said...

sorry read it over again since I thought what has a trip to holland has to do with autism, did get it now and I have been living in holland also, truly and with a child with autism.

corinnexxx

Anonymous said...

Aparna, your Lo is wonderful and the journaling is very touching.

Holland is a beautiful country just like Italy.... There isn't Venice.... but Amsterdam is so a fascinating city!
I wish you can live in "Holland" with joy and the serenity and that you can teach to your children that on the earth there is a place for many different countries.

An Italian Scrapper

Tami said...

What a beautiful layout! Make the most of Holland.

justjohanna said...

amazing journaling.

Sandra Collins said...

Incredible writing - you have a real gift with words!

Michelle W. said...

that is so amazing!!! Love this.

Michelle

Anonymous said...

dear ugo....may be tou don't know the meaning of this journaling...or may be,you used a translator-on-line to understand it.....have you understood it was concearning about AUTISM and not about a real trip????
or...you are so busy in mind not to understand the meaning of this sort of poem?
aparna, it's really, really delicate.
thanks for sharing!!!
mommi

Patty said...

Wonderful job Aparna, the journaling is very touching. The Holland is a beautiful country too...thanks for sharing this part of your important life.

Anonymous said...

Touching..... I will use this for nursing students to help them understand. thank you