AUTHORS NOTE: This is a piece I wrote based on my experience when I was in church one day. I saw this little girl who I didn't even know and somehow she managed to change my life.
I see this girl, who can barely hold her head up. Who can’t speak much at all even though she is eight years old. Tears well up in my eyes as her family struggles to take her up to the altar at church to receive her 1st Communion. This is a girl who has struggled with autism her whole life and keeps pushing forward, and this makes me think of how lucky I really am.
1 million to 1.5 million people in America today have autism, I personally don’t know anyone with this horrific disease, but if over 1 million people have it I am bound to run into someone who does have autism and sure enough I did. My sister had her 1st Communion on May 1st, 2010 this was supposed to be one of the happiest days ever for my family but for me it was a sad and defiantly eye opening event. For the 1st Communion I had reserved seats in the church which happened to be right across from a child who has autism. This girl was eight years old and was receiving her first communion today. I watched as the mother and father struggled to get this girl in her wheel chair and push her up to the altar, but when she couldn’t eat the bread I thought to myself that family struggles with their child everyday and they can’t complain but they still keep fighting when they could’ve given up already. Then I thought, I complain daily on many non important things when I really should be treasuring these things and be thankful for what I have.
This family has inspired me to keep moving forward and be thankful for what I have. I don’t even know them but seeing them keep fighting has really touched me. Many people probably go up to them daily and say how sorry they are and that they know what they are going through but truly they don’t know. I can’t picture if I were to be autistic or if my family and friends were. Autism is a terrible disease that people can’t escape from, each day they just dream of being a normal family, but then they wake up.
Be thankful for everything you have, and never live down any moment. My life changed on May 1st, 2010 when I realized that people have it worse than me and that I should be the last one complaining. Every day I think of that family and treasure every minute of my life.
Wow that's a cool story Katelyn!!! That is very true how other people, especially people with diseases or disabilities such as autism, have a completely different life and can't escape from the challenges they fight every day.
ReplyDeleteI think that is a really nice piece. I like how you kind of linked your life, and the girl's life and kind of compared them. One suggestion is just check the spelling and grammar. There were just a couple errors in the piece. One thing that I really liked was your voice. I always feel like it is one of the most essential parts in a writing piece. You either have good voice or not. One thing that I really think helps with voice is opinion and you had really really good voice. Overall, I really liked this piece and I think you wrote it from you heart which really helped and made it a strong piece. Nice Job!!!
ReplyDeleteOkay, first off, this almost made me cry in class, so well done. Secondly, thank you for sharing such an important moment in your life, a moment that touched you deeply, and you may carry with you for the rest of your life.
ReplyDeleteSince the topic is so serious, not just the autism, but your own sensetive and spititual thoughts, you do want to go back into this and revisit the phrasing for clarity. These sort of pieces can be the hardest to write, but in the end, the most meaningful and effective.
That is such a touching story. It is amazing how love for your family goes...like the little girls parents. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteKatelyn! I'm tearing up! That was such a good story, and so well put. I'm going to try to stop complaining now, you really made me think about things differently. Thank you Katelyn.
ReplyDeleteThat's really good, and I remember you telling me the story!:) Really good job with linking the story to personal experiences!
ReplyDeleteLike Natalie said, it really got to me how I complain so much and now I shouldn't. I was at home reading this piece before soccer and I physically started crying. That girl's parents know exactly what they are dealing with, and I am glad that they have not given up. Thanks a ton Katelyn. (still crying...) :'(
ReplyDeleteWow. your writing skills are superb but sometimes it's not even the techniques you use but rather the content of the writing. A lot of times these moments in life are the most precious, but it takes a deeply thoughtful person, like you, to realize this. I think we all have momnets in life, or at least we should, to make us step back a bit and ralize what is really important. Sometimes a think we get so caught up in homework, TV, or friends that we forget how tiny of a fraction these parts of life take up. If anyone is looking for a really good song that explains this very deeply I would suggest, "Tiny life" by Danny Gokey. You could even just read the lyrics becasue they are so beautiful. my first time listening to it, I didn't understand the 1st verse, but my mom explained it to me. Danny Gokey wrote this song about himself and it starts out that he is landing on an airplane. Just wanted to let you know this, becasue it turns out to be a big chunk of what the song is about. Please email me what you thought of the song. Beautiful job, Katelyn. This poem was so thoughtful and sincere. It made me teary eyed too.
ReplyDeleteMy eyes are starting to well up! This piece was really touching, and it made me realize how much I have to be thankful for. It's inspiring that even after everything that that family has been through, they are still working through it. This was a very good piece.
ReplyDeleteWOW. That was... touching. It really made me think about how easy we have it but take it for granted. Some of us are mad we didn't make the basketball team. Whatever. At least we can go out there and try. We can run, even just stand. It's really amazing the extent of things we take for granted while other would give almost anything for these luxeries.
ReplyDeleteThat's right Sam! I think a lot of us "abiltative" (to have ability)(I don't know if that's a word) people sometimes expect life to sort of fall into place, but it's those people that were born with their live's out of place that really touch you. They have to live like that everyday, and like Katelyn said, push on.
ReplyDeleteThis was a truly very touching story! It's so sad and you were write it does make you think about life differently. I can just picture it in my mind, because you did such a great job explaining it! Good piece!
ReplyDeleteWow Kaitlyn you almost made me cry, I have a cousin with Autism. This was really touching, but I also have something to say from watching my cousin and his family. They were sad at first, but now they seem okay. They love him, and just because he has autism doesn't mean he can't do anything. He is really smart and he is better at reading than a lot of other people I know. I don't think of him as having special needs, I think of him as having special talents. Otherwise I have to say it really does make me look at what I have and say wow I have it easy.
ReplyDeleteI don't even now if that makes sense, but oh well nice job Kaitlyn.
Wow, this is amazing. So insightful and so true. I can imagine something like this. I had an eye opening experience like this when my dad and I went down to the soup kitchen to serve the needy. I will never be same.
ReplyDeleteMy brother has autism(you all probably know him) and this piece reminded me of how unsevere his autism is. Your piece really touching and it gives me a new point of view about everything.
ReplyDeleteWow this is really touching and your voice makes everyone rethink life, as u can tell from all these comments. Im glad you thought about this enough to write a piece about it, it really shows you care. good job!
ReplyDeleteI will have to agree with everyone who has commented on this. You are truly a very caring person and deserve to treasure every moment of your life. As Mr. Johnson said, this almost made me cry. You should be credited for sharing you thoughts your personal feelings and experiences on your blog and I thank you for sharing this story because it is a very inspiring one.
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