The day before the big day...

(A similar version of the latter part of this blog post also appears on my advocacy blog here.)

So...

Tomorrow is The Day.  In the afternoon. I am PRAYING PRAYING PRAYING up a storm. Praying. Reading the Word. Crying (only once today though!). And praying some more.

I am determined to fight, determined to reach with all my might for a positive outcome. I do get worried and scared, but after the first few rocky days I have been fighting to keep a grip on my sanity and not allow myself to be overcome with fear and doubt.  I'm trying to be positive and not dwell on the negative and the "what if" scenario.  I've pledged to myself that we will utilize everything we can to address the monumental problem in our midst. And I've been trying to prioritize self-care, because this is a very emotionally draining situation.  I've been trying to occupy myself by doing what I love. Engaging in advocacy. Spending time with my family.  Dabbling in some (corny) creative writing.

My sweet hubby will be missing an important work deadline so that we can go in and wage war together tomorrow. This is the first battle; an important one. It's not likely to be the last one, but it is a crucial element in this fight. In a sense, tomorrow might "make or break" this whole thing. PLEASE keep lifting us up in your prayers and thoughts.   I will try my best to post an update. Prayerfully it will be a happy one and not a tale of defeat and woe.

But in the theme of staying positive, I'd like to switch gears and talk about something else, something that I thought was very sweet and encouraging. It's cross-posted on Advocacy Without Borders too. :)
***

I hope you all don't mind me sharing something from a very unconventional little advocate...my youngest daughter. 

My daughter is six years old. She is a sweet, fun-loving little girl who loves to read, loves to sing, and loves to play. She has an IQ in the moderately gifted range. She is also a little girl of color and proudly Autistic. 

As she has been reading books independently since before she was two years old (she, like many Autistics, was hyperlexic), she took it upon herself a few months ago to dismiss me from my bedroom story duties.  Now she and her little brother, who is four years old, take nightly turns choosing a book. Then the two of them lay down and she reads aloud (since he can't read).

She was very concerned about the book that they read last night. So today she decided that wanted me to send them a letter that she wrote to tell them about her concerns. She emailed the following message to me for me to print out and send on her behalf:

"Can you put little dog in the back so the dogs can be safe? I am six years old. It made me feel confused when little dog sat in the front of the car. If kids read Being Safe they will think that they should sit in the front of the car too. It's that they won't be safe."

She was concerned about a section of the book that depicted a dog buckled in the front passenger seat beside his mother (the "animals" were dressed like humans and were acting like humans as well) while she drove them around in their car.  She wanted them to consider changing that to prevent possible safety problems. 


It has been a rough week. Very rough. But every day I see so many reasons why it is important to continue advocating, continue educating, continue caring about the world around me. I am humbled, and inspired, on a daily basis by so many wonderful people who give of themselves in an effort to make things better for all of us. 

Sometimes my daily inspiration comes from any number of the selfless, dedicated, extraordinary people who are doing amazing things around the world. 

But sometimes it comes from the simple act of a familiar person in the next room, like my baby girl.  She's just a small child, but she's pretty amazing to me actually. So very proud. 

Comments

  1. I wrote a letter to Disney asking them not to make their movies so scary when I was 4 ;) I'm on the autism spectrum and I'm now in my twenties

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