Monday

Mondays are difficult for many of us. Mondays are especially difficult for DC. It does not matter if he had a busy weekend or just sat around. It does not matter if he went to sleep early or late.

It just does not seem to matter.

He wakes up relatively happy every morning – Monday included – and goes about his business. For some reason; and it usually happens right before he is ready to leave – his mood changes quickly and drastically.

He does nothing differently on Monday morning than he does any other morning and I try to be very conscious of what I might say or do. I try not look at him for too long or say anything that will set him off. You know, like when you have to try not to look when your child tries a new food because just the act of looking at him will make him stop eating it. That is how our Monday mornings go. Avert your eyes and don’t say anything.

Everything is done the same way and in the order that he likes to do it.

As careful as I am, if I hear…

“I got to hurry hurry hurry” I know it’s all over.

I never tell him to hurry. I am very careful about that, especially in the morning and even more-so on Mondays. We get up in enough time so that he does not have to rush. I do still have to remind him:

Time to brush your teeth

Time to get dressed …. but I do that every morning.

We always leave enough time for him to “Do the writing” (princess papers) while using his iPad.

When the “hurry, hurry, hurry” rears it’s ugly head as it did this morning, I tell him that he has plenty of time. There is no rush. I have to try but I know that by that time, there is no turning him back.

When his transportation came this morning, DC was in rare form and ran, full speed out to the van. I was willing him with my mind to get in, because if he stops and looks back at me – he will come charging back.

And that is what he did.

He came charging back so fast that I was sure he would not be able to stop; he did stop running before knocking me over but he was not happy.

And so it began…..

I won’t go into details but it was loud, very loud…

After what seemed like an eternity, he calmed himself and started walking slowly back to the van. “Slowly” was good and I was just thinking that this hadn’t been all that bad compared to some Mondays, when he started running full steam again…. to the van and right back to me again…. to fulfill his mission of spreading of autism awareness to the neighborhood.

The driver had gotten out and opened the door while he was waiting for all of this to end, in the hopes that if he did not have to stop to open it, he would get right in. It worked. He went back to the van again and GOT IN.

The van started backing out of the driveway, stopped and pulled back in. DC jumped out and ran full steam back to me again for just a touch more awareness spreading. Finally he started back to the van; walking this time, so I was hopeful. He got in the van – even more hopeful – and the van drove away. I stood there just in case but it did not pull back in.

I know I will never know what goes on in his mind all of the time but still, it bothers me because I can not figure out what triggers this. What sets him off all of a sudden? For now, I am going to have to go with the fact that NO ONE likes Mondays and this is just the way he reacts to them lately. Mondays were never an issue until the last year or so.

It could be that he is just tired, but then why is he all right most of the morning? I watch and watch but I just do not see what triggers it and why just over the last year or so. Nothing about his day is different.

Yes, I have been mother to my autistic son for 26 years and yes, I know that we sometimes cannot figure out what is going on. I know that….

Knowing that does not stop me from trying to figure it out… It never did and it never will.

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I normally use my other blog for random face book statuses, but these fit the mood here today:

After a holiday weekend so Tuesday was our Monday:

Another Monday holiday, so Tuesday was again our Monday:

When Mondays go well, one begins to worry..

#NotSoBadMonday (a big chunk of ceiling came down in the kitchen right after this next status was posted, so the rule is; if DC doesn’t get me, something else will)