A Blessing

6 Years ago when we moved into our house, a single mom (Regine) with 2 kids (Louise and Claude) moved in across the street. She is great. her kids are great. They are the kind of neighbors you love to have, just great people. Louis is 10 and Claude is 13. Claude was born at 26 weeks and has severe disabilities. To be honest, I am not sure what all of his disabilities are but i know he has some OCD/Autism tendencies and some major hearing/communication disabilities. He does have hearing aids in both ears but still can't hear a lot. His mom uses sign language to communicate with him and even though he understands what she is saying, he doesn't reciprocate it, making it hard to have a 2 way conversation.

Although you would never know it taking to Regine, it is hard for her to juggle working full time as a teacher and making sure both her kids are taken care of (more so than a mom of kids without any disabilities). Regine has to leave for work at 6am leaving both kids home alone for a few hours until the bus comes. Louis and Noah ride the same bus but Claude's bus doesn't come for 45 minutes after the elementary bus. Although Louis is only 10, she is great with her older brother and really takes care of him. Regine was in a panic since the lady that was sitting with Claude every morning backed out last minute so of course, i offered to help. So once Noah and Louis get on the bus, I go and sit with Claude until his bus comes to pick him up at the front door.

Because of his OCD/Autism tendencies, the routine is pretty much the same every morning. When i walk in the front door, Claude is sitting on the couch watching Clifford. Then comes Super Why and at the end of Super Why the bus comes. I help Claude get a drink of water, go to the bathroom, get his backpack on and get out the door and on the bus. Every morning the same. I try to interact with Claude but usually our interaction is very small and limited being as I only know a few words of sign language and he doesn't talk back. But nonetheless, I smile at him every chance I get. I mean a smile is the universal language, right? Then, when he is is on the bus, i turn off the tv and lights, lock up, text his mom to tell her he is on the bus, and then i go home.

Well, the other day (after a few weeks of this same routine), everything was the same except when Claude was walking out the door, he stopped and gave me the BIGGEST hug!!! I seriously got the biggest tears in my eyes! I texted his mom that day like i do every day and told her about the hug. She called me right away to thank me because Claude only hugs people when he feels really comfortable with them. I could hear the relief in Regine's voice knowing that Claude was safe and comfortable when she couldn't be there to help him on the bus. Every day since that day, Claude gives me a hug on the way out the door. I can tell that he is trying to interact with me a little more each day too. Just this morning, he asked me to put the covers on him while he was sitting on the couch watching tv. It may not seem like a big deal, but it is! Other than spending time with Allen and Noah, the 45 minutes I spend with Claude each morning is one of the best parts of my day. It is seriously changing me. It sets the tone of my day. The not so funny thing about it is that the lady that Regine was paying to sit with Claude every morning backed out because she felt uncomfortable being around Claude. She told Regine that. I am so glad that I am able to help out and even though I won't accept any money from Regine, I am being paid every day in a way that money could never even compete with. Claude is an amazing kid and I am so thankful that he is helping me to count my blessings!