Subtitle: Never Say Never

Growing up, my Mother would lovingly warn my siblings and me, “Don’t go around crowing about what you won’t do, because that’s exactly what you’ll end up doing.

I guess the lesson here, although not directly related to autism, is that I should have listened to this very sage advice. I think it speaks to the wisdom of keeping an open mind, and not being too quick to rule a thing out just because you already have other ideas. That concept actually has universal applications, especially as related to autism.

Which brings me to the story of how the stars aligned and I found myself in a place I never intended to be in, doing something I never intended to do….

I had finally reached that point in my life where I didn’t have to worry about keeping a roof over any head but my own. I was excited about that, and I could hardly wait to start the adventure of enjoying my newfound freedom. As I was passing through Anyplace, USA, on my way to Someplace Else, I decided to stop for a while. And that’s when it happened.

There are those who believe that my path crossing Lia’s was fate, or divine intervention even. I don’t know. I just know that I am here, and it looks like I’ll be here for a while.

I would love to give you the full details of the sequence of events leading up to our first meeting, but I can’t. That would give too much away. I can tell you that I never actually applied for the job, it just sort of fell into my lap. When I was invited to work with a Pediatric teen, my first response was, “Yeah, right. I don’t see that happening.”

When I realized nothing else seemed to be panning out, and this patient’s name kept popping up, I decided, “Well, I guess I can help out until something better comes along.” I’m still here. I don’t think I will find anything better than this because I’m not looking.

And that reminds me of this little jewel I heard at church one Sunday several months before my arrival in Lia’s little corner of the world:

When you think everything is falling apart, it’s really falling into place.