A New Way of Thinking

I am sitting up with a sick boy. Jake woke up throwing up and I feel so bad for him. It makes me think about how much he deals with and how helpless I feel at times. Look at that smile, he is such an incredible young man, yet society often fails to see how extraordinary he is. Lately, I have seen comments on facebook or heard people use the word "retarded" to describe a not so intelligent action. It makes me think how common this word is and how society accepts it as a norm. We grew up hearing it and now as parents use it without a second thought showing our kids that it is okay. Being a parent of a child diagnosed with mental retardation, I pray for a new way of thinking. You see Rob and I battle everyday for our boy. His mind does not think like yours or mine and for that society views him negatively. I do not blame society, before I had my kids I was right there with them. But, what if we could alter our perception of the word "retarded" and passed on a new way of thinking? What if we took that word out of our vocabulary and it did not represent a negative in our world? Rob and I work everyday to teach our children that no matter what they are special, unique individuals that make this world a better place. We want them to be confident and feel loved, not just by us, but society. That word discounts everything we work so hard to teach our children. I realize change is hard, but hope and pray for a new way of thinking. That we raise a more compassionate and thoughtful generation, where judgements of those with special needs is not the norm and where the word "retarded" describes a condition rather than a negative action. As a society we have come so far, what if we continued on that path when it comes to people living with special needs? God creates each person in his image and all are unique and special :). I love you so much my boy thank you for teaching me daily and helping me be better.