A Little Understanding

Perfect Night

"Do you need help with anything?" Jeffrey asked.

"No it's okay. I got it handled. Take a seat, make yourself at home" she smiled as she headed to the kitchen. Returning a few minutes later she handed Jeffrey a bowl and sat down of the sofa next to him.

"This looks delicious. Is this Tiramisu?"

"Yeah. One of my favourites" Layla smiled.

Jeffrey took a spoonful and put in his mouth, savouring it for a moment. "Wow... this is fantastic! Best Tiramisu I've ever had".

"Really?"

"Absolutely" he grinned.

"I'm glad you like it".

They made conversation while they ate their dessert together. Layla asked Jeffrey about his work, and what inspired him to be a carpenter.

"I always loved making things with my hands you know. There's just something really satisfying about completing a project" he told her. "I started off with just fixing things, then I started making things from scratch. It's just something that I had a bit of a talent for".

"Sounds like you are a very helpful man to have around" she smiled.

"If there's ever anything you need help with, I'm more than happy to take a look" he offered.

"Thank you Jeff, that's very kind of you. I'll keep that in mind".

"Can I ask you something Layla?"

"Of course"

"Could you explain Autism to me in terms of how it affects Benji? I've done some reading up on it, but from what I understand it can vary a lot for each person, and I'd like to understand Benji a little more"

"That's so sweet. I love that you want to know about it. Most people seem to ignore it and just try to pretend that it's not an issue and then wonder why he doesn't act the way everyone else does".

"That must be hard for you".

"All I ever want is for Benji to be accepted. I want him to grow up and feel like he is special... not strange".

"I think you are doing a fantastic job of that" he reassured her.

"Thank you Jeff. So what is it you want to know?"

"Everything and anything" he smiled.

"Even the difficult stuff?"

"Everything" he repeated with a smile.

"Okay well... Autism is described as a developmental disorder. Sometimes people think that this means he is mentally retarded... he's not. It just means that he is delayed in things like speech and communication, and along with that he has behavioural problems too. Often kids with autism also have to some extent sensory processing disorder" Layla explained.

"What does that mean?"

"It just means that he doesn't process stimuli the same as we do. At somewhere like the grocery store you and I just see the lights and hear a lot of background noise... for Benji all of that is amplified. The lights can be almost blinding, and every little noise from the beep at the checkout, to the woman rustling through her coins, to the man scratching his beard behind us it can all become deafeningly loud to Benji. He can't properly process all that his senses are taking in and it can be very overwhelming for him. Often resulting in meltdowns".

"Oh man. Poor little guy. I can't imagine how hard that must be for him. And so confusing".

"Yeah, it's not easy".