We Never Change

The group Coldplay performs a song called "We Never Change." I interpret its lyrics to mean that we all want the same things in life, a good home, friends... for life to not always be so difficult.

Easy. Can we try easy? I think I could get used to it.

It is my son's 24th birthday this month. It figures. I think that if there were a more volatile month in planning a party, it would be January.

You see, Paul seems to bear the heaviest crosses.

When the rest of us get a cold and recover in three days, his develops into a secondary infection, like a sinus whopper, and a double ear infection.

When all the kids got the chicken pox those weeks in February, when I was home duking it out with Calamine lotion and oatmeal baths, who got it the worst? Paul. He had five spots to every one of Danika's, probably even under the skin and inside the eyelids.

Que to 24 years old.

For a young man positioned on the Autism spectrum, major areas of life are extra challenging.

Academics are a struggle.

Conversation is a puzzling maze.

Relationships? A mine field.

We just finished Christmas. Many struggle with high expectations with the holidays and even if we experience  a 'deck the halls, Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la' party, January can be a let down.

So this year, everyone in the house is sick with a virus. Who got it first? Paul.

The last person to get it will have it on his birthday, which means we can't have a big party.

Paul seems somewhat consoled that he will still get gluten-free cake and gifts, but the party is postponed.

He expresses his frustration, somewhat subliminally. It shows up when we get home after his Drawing I class. He was calm on the way home. We hit the door and he begins the noises, the slapping of one fist upon another, the loud clicking of the tongue as he slams the microwave door shut.

I won't go through the ensuing details of the scenario, but I had to make sure he was okay before I went back to work.

I was glad to leave.

We will get through the next few days. We always do.

Maybe next week will be a balmy 50 degrees, no snow, and no germs left to terrorize the family.

We all want the same things, don't we? We want to feel good. We want to know that we matter. We want friends, a nice home, a place we can stake claim to, whether it be a hobby, a car, or a relationship. We are a sensory and fickle people. We are happy one minute, bored the next. Our attention spans are short. We forget what God has done for us, how He never leaves.

Shouldn't that be enough?