A Sanfilippo Story by Grammy L…

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR OLIVER!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

Oliver is 6 years old! He doesn’t quite grasp the fact that today is his birthday, we guess, since his party with friends won’t take place until Sunday, the 4th of April. We remember, a little sadly, how excited he was to wake up on his birthday and celebrate his special day in the past. “It’s Oliver’s birthday,” he would shout with a great big smile on his face. Today is different. Maybe on Sunday he will realize we are celebrating his birthday.

Later in the afternoon, Oliver attended the birthday party of Jacob, one of his friends from pre-school last year. It was held at a gym with sports areas. Jen said he had a wonderful time running around and throwing balls. The best part though was that Jacob and his friends played with Oliver. They chased him and joined him in the various areas as he flitted here and there the way he does. They INCLUDED and ACCEPTED him!

Sadly, this is not usually the case when Oliver is around kids his own age. They label him strange because he acts differently so they don’t engage with him and leave him all by himself. It’s not their fault. But maybe it’s time to start having conversations with neuro-typical children about all the Olivers of this world they have yet to meet. How can we explain that Oliver is doing his very best even if it looks different than their very best? As Oliver says, “hmmm… I KNOW!” isn’t this a lesson for us adults too? Hmmm… I KNOW I need to learn to practice this!