April is Autism Awareness Month and though our knowledge of autism is greater as more attention is given, it remains a condition relatively misunderstood. We have learned about autism through the media, through parent testimonies and to a great extent, from those living with autism who are able to communicate their experience. Temple Grandin has given us much insight through her many books and public appearances. HBO produced a movie about her life, starring Claire Danes who brilliantly captured the heart and mind of Temple and gave us a moving insight into the life of a person with autism. Kim Peek, whose life inspired the movie “Rainman” has amazed people all over the country with his exceptionalities, as well as his struggles living in a neurotypical world. The television show, “Parenthood” features a young boy with Aspergers and although I haven’t been able to confirm it, the main character on Bones, Dr. Temperance Brennon, is clearly on the spectrum. The riveting novel, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime,” was written by a special education teacher about a boy with high functioning Autism. All of these stories, people and characters have helped spread awareness and paint a picture of the puzzle we call Autism.
But there are so many unheard voices. So many people with autism do not have the ability to share their experience because they are non-verbal. Many others have very limited verbal expression. Whether they can’t or won’t talk remains unknown, but nonetheless it is their reality and it is a cage they are unable to break free of. Because of their inability to communicate through language, we unfortunately may never know their reality.
Temple Grandin says, “I can remember the frustration of not being able to talk. I knew what I wanted to say, but I could not get the words out, so I would just scream.” As a special education teacher who currently teaches three students with autism, I can tell you how heart breaking it is to watch a child suffer with this inability to talk. And when it comes to can’t or won’t, I am more inclined to think it’s the former because I have watched these children try. I have a student now who tries so hard to tell me what she wants but just can’t seem to find the way. She understands that gestures like pointing are a means of communicating but she is not yet able to connect the gesture to the particular thing she wants. She may want a drink but point to food. She may want a book but ask for a toy. When we don’t understand, she screams and cries, throws herself on the floor in frustration. And all I can do is wish that I could jump inside her head and know. But I am left frustrated too, because I can’t.
We try every day as educators and parents to break through this language barrier. We often have to think outside the box. Amazing advances in technology have given us new tools to communicate but it’s not the universal answer, if there is such a thing. Annie Sullivan was a brilliant educator who found a way to reach Helen Keller. Helen was a child who could not hear, see or speak and yet Sullivan never gave up and on one day, at a well pump in the backyard she signed W-A-T-E-R in her hand und suddenly Keller made the connection. Once opened, we learned of the brilliance, wonder and compassion of this little girl’s mind. And it wasn’t because Helen learned how to communicate with us…it was because we learned how to communicate with her.
When we think about autism, we need to be mindful of the whole spectrum and not just those who can speak and share their experience. There are so many unheard voices who want to tell us their story but just don’t know how. We need to find the way to help them talk to us. If we can unlock the mysteries they hold, we will at last begin to put the puzzle pieces together. Perhaps we will learn that Autism is not something to be cured, but something to honor. Perhaps we will learn how to bring these special souls into our world, or better yet how to enter theirs.
"Autism is about having a pure heart and being very sensitive… It is about finding a way to survive in an overwhelming, confusing world… It is about developing differently, in a different pace and with different leaps." ~Trisha Van Berkel
"If I could snap my fingers and be non-autistic, I would not - because then I wouldn't be me. Autism is part of who I am." ~Temple Grandin
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