One of the first times this happened was on our vacation this summer as we watching a boy who likely has a diagnosis on the autism spectrum interact with his family. After they passed us, AJ turned and asked me, "Do you think he has special needs?"
I was surprised he knew the phrase "special needs," although I'm not sure why. He's extremely observant and has reasoning skills far beyond his age. We had a good conversation about how everyone has different needs. I said that although it appeared that child had some unique needs, he was enjoying a vacation with his family just like our family was.
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| AJ loves (and hugs) Teddy fiercely. |
Then, the other week, we were discussing Teddy's speech therapist being pregnant. AJ asked, "Do you think her baby will have a diagnosis?" After considering his question for a moment, I told him that most people aren't born with special diagnoses. (In hindsight, there's probably better answers, but seriously, this question came at 6 a.m. before school and work.)
Within the past week, AJ referred to Teddy as the Secret Keeper. He told Teddy the middle name of one of his friends since Teddy wouldn't tell us. It was awfully cute to watch him whisper in Teddy's ear, and he has a point, Teddy is a really good Secret Keeper. In fact, he even helped me assemble Dave's St. Nick present ... if you count whacking me with the bars I was trying to assemble help. But he didn't tell Dave what he was getting.
I'm sure more moments like these will occur as AJ's understanding of Teddy's disorder and disabilities in general increases. The awareness that he has, though, and understanding and acceptance put him leaps and bounds above so many other children ... and adults to be quite honest.
💙
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