What’s Your State of Mind?

Summer is a state of mind.
A warm outlook.
A sunny disposition.
Your biggest concern is whether to swim or paddle out.

For a parent with a special needs child,
Summer is a state of mind.
A patient outlook.
A (fake) sunny disposition.
Your biggest concern is your schedule, whether your child will regress.
This is the reality

We all look forward to summer. The end of the long school year when my child every morning says, "No school, no lunch, pajamas soon!” Every morning is the same response back, "Yes school, yes lunch, pajamas soon after school!”

Then the conversation (this is what a conversation in autism world is like) turns into, "No school tomorrow?” This goes on for 180 days of school. The last day of school is celebrated with my son announcing: "No more school. School is closed!” I look at him and nod, saying under my breath, "Yes, for a week and then you have summer school."

My summer is condensed on a calendar posted on the kitchen refrigerator that states every move we are making. It declares every vacation and to where. It also reads what days we are camping, boating or staying at a house. I am told every day by Crew when we are leaving for each trip. He writes a list for each trip, mentioning things like kids and friends that the trip might entail.

I see the summer flashing in front of my eyes because of the schedule I need to make for my child with a disability.

So yes: Summer is a state of mind, even when you're losing your mind.
Yes: Maintaining a warm outlook while trying to explain to your child that he has to go to school over the summer.

Yes: Keeping a sunny disposition while repeating a hundred times a day to “Stay in pajamas, stay home today.”

Yes: My biggest concern is staying afloat, trying not to sink.