Yesterday was a great day with my family. The sun was shining, it was cold but we would venture out. Sydney woke up at 3:00 am ready to go to Ms. Kristin. She had an appointment at the salon and she was excited. I made it a family affair and scheduled a haircut for Harrison too.
Sydney wanted to go to Walgreens to get snacks before her appointment. She picked out her outfit. It was her floral maxi dress and flip-flops, with a fleece jacket. I think she thought we would get pedicures too.
We went into the store and the kids picked out their snacks. They each had their money to pay for their purchases. The store wasn’t crowded, so I was glad. We were waiting in line and I could feel someone staring at us. She was staring at Sydney. I tried to get my mind right. I wasn’t in the mood to give an autism awareness lesson today. And I forgot my autism power cards that I pass out to people about living with autism. I prayed that we could hurry up and get out of the store.
We were so close. And then the lady said, “She is adorable but isn’t she cold?”. First, I had to “whoosa” and remember that orange is not the new black for me. I ignored her as I typed in my rewards number. She repeated the same question. This time a little louder. I turned around and smiled and told her that we just flew back in from Florida. Then she gave me her stamp of approval look and left us alone.
I looked up at Harrison and my eyes said it all. Don’t talk until we leave the store. When we left the store I told Harrison that I was sorry for not being the best example back there. I was tired and cranky, which was not an excuse. But, I couldn’t give her an autism 101 crash course before our appointments. To be honest with you, I really don’t know what I would have said to her. That’s why I tried to ignore her.
I am not a perfect parent all of the time. Sometimes I screw up and my children will notice. I can’t hate myself for my actions but I can learn from them for the future. Sydney of course had to walk like an egyptian on the way out of the store because she could see herself on the security monitor. I am sure that lady talked about us when we left the store. Our old family theme song was “Turn This Mutha” Out by MC Hammer. Our new family theme song is “This Is How We Do It” by Montell Jordan.
It was a good day for Copher’s Community.
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