It has been a long time since I have written. There is a lot to catch up on, but it will need to wait for another time. This post is for and about Autism Awareness. April is Autism Awareness Month, and if you know me or have read my blog, then you know that my youngest son has Autism and I have felt deeply in my heart that I need to help spread awareness. Not just having people know the word. But to know Autism-- or at least, to know it as much as they can without experiencing it themselves. Every case of Autism is very different than the next one-- sort of like snowflakes. :)
So, my plan is to try to post at least 4 times in April with facts and information about Autism. I will also include how certain things in our daily lives are affected by Autism. Don't forget to share my blog and to leave comments for me about your experiences or thoughts regarding Autism. (Keep in mind that I monitor my comments and will not keep negative and rude comments, or any that try to cause arguments.)
So, let me say this for tonight: My family is participating in the "Light It Up Blue" campaign that was founded by the organization Autism Speaks. There is huge controversy on them and their tactics. While I personally disagree with many things that they do, or don't do in some cases, I don't feel that it is supporting Autism Speaks, per se, by lighting our home blue, or wearing blue,etc. Just supporting Autism. I think that the idea behind the blue lights is mainly to spread awareness. We do not financially support Autism Speaks but we do feel that more awareness and education is needed, and therefore we are "going blue". We see it as a way to get the word out and bring Autism "to light".
We already have our lights on. They will be on all month. I made some shirts that we will wear, and I have a few other things up my sleeves if all works out. But really, in the end, our main goal as a family who deals with Autism every day is to spread more than awareness. We want to spread understanding, acceptance, education, and advocate on our son's behalf.
