This Is Charlie's Voice (#152)

Interesting sounds coming from the backseat of the black car these past two days.

"Scarey!' Charlie said that as we drove (as we have every Saturday since April) to his verbal behavior session. I don't know if the word just came into his mind, or if he saw an inflatable King Kong on a certain car dealership roof (there was a big blown-up gorilla on said store last summer; now there's Santa and his crew), or if he heard a word on the song on the CD player that rhymed with "scarey."

"Christmas!" Charlie repeated after I had mentioned something about the next big holiday on the return trip.

And yesterday, he sang all of Dell'amore Non Si Sa, mostly the melody (in tune) with an occasional word of Italian or English. When I played the CD with that song this morning, Charlie had such a big smile that the corners of his mouth seemed to touch the edges of his fleece hat.

Home and outside, Charlie hopped on his bike, hopped off at a playground ("swwing! swide! Daddy, I want") and then back on without Jim saying a word, and all around the neighboring towns.

Home and inside, Charlie plopped down atop one of the heater vents to strum his guitar, eat a place of white rice and some peas ("peaz, Mommy I want eat peaz"), thump his boomwhackers, medidate.

When Charlie asked for sushi, it was easy to say yes. The first supermarket had three trays of limp cucumber rolls. The second store had three slightly more fresh-appearing packs. Charlie moved down the display case and stuck his hand in a niche behind the prepared salads, and pulled out a gleaming plastic tray of his favorite. He trotted off to the check-out counter with his prize while my mom and I wondered if someone hadn't been trying to hide that pack of sushi for themselves.

"Sooshee, yes, dinn-err. Mommy!"

What a voice. What happy music, how joyous, and how free.

Autism Children Science Health Parenting