One thing that Autism has taught me...

In the world of Autism, there are very few times when I feel like someone is on my side.

There are the daily struggles that seem to never end, the diet, the supplements, the bedwetting, the scripting, the hair pulling, the endless obsessing about times, schedules, calendars, and of course the never ending reciting of “What I want” and “What I need”. Sometimes it is all a bit overwhelming. Add to that the cost of all the supplements and medications and doctor appointments and gas it takes to drive to this meeting and that therapy and this appointment and that evaluation. And then there are my other 2 children who have their own needs and wants and wishes that I try to fulfill. Sometimes I feel like a single day will not go by without having to fight a battle. That is why it is so refreshing to encounter a person, a group, or an organization that is willing to help.

I have had the good fortune to have several such encounters over the last couple years. It began shortly after Nick was finally diagnosed and I was searching for answers and support. I found OASIS of Wooster and introduced myself to founder Angel Thompson. She immediately sent me lots of information. One thing that caught my eye was an educational program on Equine Assisted Therapy. We have always been a “horse family”. My kids were riding before they walked, and I have owned a horse of one kind or another since I was 10 years old. I went to the meeting and learned about a local center that offers therapeutic riding. After listening to the instructor Jesse Howell talk about his other students with Autism and the gains they made, I decided to give it a try. But how would I pay for it? At 30 dollars a session, it seemed unlikely. Again Angel stepped up and suggested some funding sources. I investigated the possibility with Nick’s case worker at Wayne County Board of MRDD. They immediately approved Nick for his first session of therapy. And there were no meetings, no battles, just a short application form. Ten lessons! Nick took to it like a fish to water. Smiling all the way, Jesse managed to get Nick to focus, which is no small task. When Nick started he was unable to stand still at all and look Jesse in the eye. Now, Nick is starting his third session of lessons. He sits quietly in the saddle on the back of Taz, a rotund dun colored gelding and focuses on a roping dummy calf and swings the rope “back and forth, back and forth, back and forth” and then throws it and catches the calf! The look of accomplishment in Nick’s eyes brings tears to mine every time.

Jesse never gets cross or frustrated with Nick, even on the days when Nick’s mind is totally elsewhere. He is a master at redirection. The horses have a calming effect on Nick and the multitasking that is necessary with horseback riding is challenging for him. With every lesson I see connections being made. Winston Churchill said, "There is something about the outside of a horse...that is good for the inside of a man." I see proof of that as I watch Nick grooming a horse and singing “Brush, brush, brush your horse-gently down the road; brush, brush, brush your horse- from his withers to his toes”

When Jesse suggested that a pony at home would be even more opportunity for Nick to learn while riding, I was definitely interested. We would be able to clear enough room in our barn to make a stall, but the cost to install fencing was just too high.

I was talking to my nephew (a minister) one day about how frustrated I was because Nick should have a pony but there was no money to put up fencing for one. He asked me, “Kathy, do you know what the definition of faith is?” I came up with a few answers, none of them correct. Chuck told me “Faith is evidence of works not yet seen”. He explained it further by encouraging me to move forward as if it WOULD definitely happen, in fact visualizing it already happening. I started researching fencing options, pricing, and walking in the field and marking where the new fencing would be. I contacted a local fence manufacturer and asked them if they would consider donating fencing for Nick’s pony or selling some damaged or returned stock at a discounted price. I figured it was a long shot, but you can’t get an answer if you don’t ask. Within days, they contacted me and said they had plenty of material they would sell to me at scrap pricing. I went to look at the fencing and it was no scrap. A little dusty, maybe, but nice white vinyl 3 rail fencing. I cried as I told the man there that they were indeed answering a prayer. Now we just have to install it ourselves, and we are going this weekend to look at ponies and hoping to find one that is quiet, calm, and safe for Nick to ride. Nick’s grandfather has agreed to purchase the pony for him.

One thing that Autism has taught me is that there are many routes around any roadblock. Or as my mother used to say, “More than one way to skin a cat”. Whenever I am faced with an obstacle, I think of the inspirational saying “If God led me to it, he will lead me through it”.

Buckin' Ohio rodeo in Burbank will donate its 50/50 drawing from the September 13th rodeo to Change Through Chance. Also at this rodeo the clown will be Change through Chance's own Jesse Howell! For more information on the rodeo, go to www.buckinohio.com

Change Through Chance will be hosting an Open House on Saturday October 11th and Sunday October 12th. For more information, visit www.changethroughchance.org

Kathy Wood

“There is nothing—no circumstance, no trouble, no testing—that can ever touch me until, first of all, it has gone past God and past Christ, right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment, but as I refuse to become panicky, as I lift up my eyes to Him and accept it as coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing to my own heart, no sorrow will ever disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret, for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is." -- Pastor and author Alan Redpath (1907–1988)