AN EMOTIONAL PARADE

I am a crier. Give me a thought of something that could possibly be moving and I will tear up. The first day of school, the last day of school, award assemblies, curtain calls at the theater, comments others make in church meetings make me blink back tears… However, I didn’t expect a school Halloween costume parade to be a tear-jerker for me.

Jack’s older brother parades past

Last year I was thrilled to attend the school costume parade; they are terribly cute and entertaining. I have fond childhood memories of showing off my costume to the school and community. This was my first time attending as a parent because my kids’ previous school didn’t have this sort of activity. I attended this event at our neighborhood elemetary school, where our 3 typical kids are students. This was not at Jack’s charter school, so this didn’t involve him directly.

As the parade got started, the first kids through were from the “Life Skills” class. Some were in wheelchairs or with walkers, some clung to teachers or struggled to walk on their own. Some waved wildly, some were so shy they couldn’t move. They were so, so beautiful. An embarrassing, uncontrollable wave of tears flowed down my cheeks as I watched them pass by.

These kids were no longer just a cheerful, awkward group to me. They were no more a passing thought in my mind before the other kids came through. They ARE in my mind, ever since I joined their unique club. I can now honestly see that they are just kids who are also excited for a holiday. They get to show off the costumes of things they are pretending to be for the moment. Now my inner eye sees the parents who tirelessly help them, physically and emotionally. I see their siblings who have to step it up to care for them, or defend them, or watch their parents’ attention turned away from them at times. And oh, the teams they have: loving teachers and patient therapists, who are trained with skills and adjustable plans and big hearts. The kids parading past are REAL people with real stories, with real day-to-day challenges and progress. And MY real person, my Jack, has helped to open my mind to internalize about who these kids really are, even during a costume parade.