To the People Who Reach Out to My Child With Special Needs

My child with an auditory processing disorder was just trying to make conversation, but clearly, the other kid just didn’t get him. “There’s something wrong with his brain,” I overheard him say to someone else.

At that moment, I wanted to cry but controlled it to spare myself from being the center of attention at a public place. I wanted to scoop up my child, put my arms around him and shield him from any hurt, intentional or unintentional, that will come from this world.

But I know putting him in a protective bubble isn’t what’s best. As cruel as the world can sometimes be, I believe there are people God has placed in my child’s path to reach out to him, and you are one of them. You may be thinking, “Me? What did I do?”

You greeted him.

A simple “hello” goes a long way. Far too many of us are preoccupied with our own world or the world being displayed on the tiny screen in our hands that we fail to look up and notice the person right in front of us who could use a simple smile to brighten his day.

You listened to him.

Not only did you say, “Hi,” but you asked the loaded question, “How are you?” Perhaps, you weren’t expecting a detailed catalog of all the Minions and their unique characteristics or a list of voice actors from “The Lego Movie,” but you looked at him and listened to it all.

You hugged him.

Touch is very important to him. I think it assures him of acceptance by you. Isolation is his fear, as is the case with many of us, so a handshake, a hug or a high-five allow him to experience the human connection that any person may seek.

You invited him.

He seemed content to be alone, but you went out of your way to invite him to sit with you. Honestly, social situations are still challenging for him, so he probably felt awkward about accepting the invitation. Nonetheless, you took a courageous step with a seemingly simple kind gesture.

You became his friend.

He doesn’t have very many friends. In fact, if you asked him who they are, he would list names of family members: brothers, sisters, cousins, mom and dad. But you, he mentioned you. You became his friend.

Approaching someone who’s “different” can be intimidating. I understand that. After all, if you’re not crossing paths, why take the detour to intentionally go to that person? Why risk the potential awkwardness of the encounter? Would it even make a difference?

Yes, it does. It certainly does.

Follow this journey on Less to More.

The Mighty is asking its readers the following: Describe the moment a stranger — or someone you don’t know very well — showed you or a loved one incredible love. If you’d like to participate, please send a blog post to community@themighty.com. Please include a photo for the piece, a photo of yourself and 1-2 sentence bio. Check out our Submit a Story page for more about our submission guidelines.

Lead photo source: Thinkstock Images