I was nervous about taking the children, as Keaton has a habit of darting off. Open spaces are an excuse to show off his jogging skills, and I end up hot on his heels as he bolts to wherever he pleases. My son reminds me a lot of my sister, as she was notorious for doing the same.
I have short legs, and when I run I end up looking like Fred Flintstone, much to the amusement of anyone seeing me chase after my sprinter. I figured if nothing else, the family would get a good laugh watching me keep my kid within arms before he decided to go all Forrest Gump and head up to Oklahoma.
We exited the car after arriving at the camp site. I stood next to him, and watched him soak up the scenery. I had no hold on him, as I just waited to see how he would react to being outside of our usual suburban environment. He looked around, smiled, and reached for my hand.
As he led the way, we tracked through the grass and walked to the lake. Keaton was grinning from ear to ear, looking at the water and enjoying the quiet of nature. He looked at peace, happy, and content with his surroundings. There was no meltdowns, no desire to escape my hand's grip and wander into god know where, just a little boy who was enjoying himself in the serenity of the habitat.
I walked him to a playground, where he enjoyed climbing the rock wall and giving Kelly an ulcer. Keaton made the most of his play time, sliding down the slide and climbing back up again.
We need to do more of this, I thought. See, having your kid walk calmly beside you seems like a normal activity for most, but for a parent raising a child with autism, it feels miraculous.
"Sometimes people say that kids with autism aren't capable of love. That's ridiculous. My son loves deeply. He just doesn't communicate well."
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