I HAVE HOPE!
May 13, 2010. 14 years after hearing the words “Your son has autism”, all the worry, fears, hope and dreams nearly shattered, this was the night of the Grand Finale.
This was a night of celebration. All the unknowns of the past 14 years seemed to pale in comparison with seeing our son wearing a cap and gown, and crossing the stage with 250 other students in a church filled with over 3,000 families. I didn’t know when we arrived if he would run out the door, have a melt-down; refuse to go on stage… We had experienced this many times before. But, he didn’t!
In January, we made the decision to remove him from public school to attend an accredited private school because he couldn’t earn a general education diploma as he had not passed the written portion of the GHSWT (Georgia High School Writing Test). All the work and effort of 13 ½ years of schooling came down to 1 test. He had passed the other 4 tests and earned all of his credits.
With appropriate accommodations, he passed his classes as an A/B student and transferred to Faith Academy, needing only 1 course in Economics to graduate. He excelled, passing with a 99 average in this course. Private schools do not require graduation testing. He had earned a diploma for the work he had put into it.
We were surprised to see an asterisk on the program next to his name. The note at the bottom stated: “ * Denotes the Top 20% of the class”. WHAT?! When he entered the church with the rest of his class, he was wearing a gold sash around his neck that said “HONOR”. He was recognized along with the other honor students in front of the audience and heard the words “These students have earned the Hope Scholarship”. He was glowing! He was ready to cross that stage, get his diploma, hug everyone along the way, and know that HE had earned this.
After graduation, he kept smiling, allowing lots of photographs, something he typically shies away from. He took off the robe and cap, but kept on the sash. He has rubbed it, kissed it, read “HONOR” over and over…. So typical for a child with autism! When we got home I asked him “What does this sash mean to you?” And I was taken aback by his response. “I’m not stupid” was his reply. Imagine going through life thinking that about yourself and suddenly you realize that you are smarter than you thought you were.
“I have HOPE”, he said.
“Yes, you do!”
“How much do I get?”
“Well, you have to go to college to get this to pay for your classes”
“I WANT TO GO TO COLLEGE”!! Words I haven’t heard him speak until now. Can he do it? Who cares at this moment! He has HOPE! He believes HE CAN! He believes he is SMART! And HE IS!!
Today, I have shed many tears of joy and relief. It’s been a long road, but we didn’t give up. There were many frustrations and challenges. But we didn’t give up. We looked for the opportunity to help our son reach this goal, and a wonderful accredited school in our community was provided. Mission Accomplished!
Rusty has HOPE. And so do WE!