Are you scrounging for thankfulness this holiday season? Holidays can be a challenge for those walking through hard days. Perhaps you feel like you've been handed the short-end of the stick; your child is struggling, you’re exhausted and it seems like everybody else has life with a bit more gravy. It’s easy to focus on our circumstances, take stock of what we have and where we are and end up feeling completely void of thankfulness. Is there a cure for this?
I first suspected I had ADHD as a teenager, but finding the right professional to take me seriously was much harder than I expected. Previous attempts only ended in frustration and tears.
Enjoying the holidays with a food allergy sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it? After all, eating together is an integral component of the holiday season. I looked forward to making our traditional holiday foods until I was diagnosed with a dairy allergy in 2012. What was to enjoy about the holidays when the foods associated with it were off limits to me?
It was a short, ten-minute drive from the hotel to the residential facility. I maintained composure while I navigated the busy public roads, and then residential streets. I had a whole range of emotions racing through my body, mind and spirit as we pulled into the campus. This was not just a pleasure drive or a routine errand, this was a significant milestone in the life of my son and our family.
While Halloween is a fun time of year for many children, it can be a really difficult time for some, including many children with additional/special needs. For them it can be a confusing, anxiety-inducing, or even utterly terrifying time. But it doesn’t have to be like that. If we stop for a moment to think about the things they might find hard and how to put things in place to help them, children with special needs can safely join in the fun, too. So what are some of the things about Halloween that children with additional needs can find hard?
Being a special needs parent and serving in disability ministry has changed how I approach relationships. For example, disability teaches me benefits of slowing down, and trusting deeply, including the treasure of trusting God. But I’m also reminded me that serving in disability ministry is much like serving in a mission field. We learn how relationships were meant to be lived.
There is a certain level of comfort and safety in a trench. It’s not really the place you want to be, but you have some safety and comfort knowing you are protected. We have friends that are in trenches right next to us, so we all feel we understand what the other is going through. We see when there is a battle brewing, and sometimes we even hop into each other’s trenches! We know we’re on a level field of challenge, and being together helps us to get through the battle before us. We can’t be in the same trench and work against one another.
