I am once again joining with www. maternalspark.com to talk about what is inspiring me this week. Well my son, M is. This is a collage I did two years ago in a moment of fear, doubt, and uncertainty, concerning his future. My oldest son, M, was diagnosed with autism when he was two. When I made this collage, M was about to enter Kindergarten and I was fighting with the Board of Education for an appropropriate setting for him as he is high functioning and had a lot of potential. They either wanted to put him in regular ed or in a low functioning program. Neither was acceptable to me. As I made countless calls, visited programs, prayed and cried out to God continuously, I decided to create art. I was lead to this verse in the Good Book, Jermiah 29:11, which says "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. " The text is over M's face as I am pictured praying. Somehow, creating and believing this simple image and text concoction symbolizing my giving M to God and letting Him handle the situation, let me rest.
M is now in an amazing inclusion program, talks a mile a minute, is a legos master, loves music and drama, and is quite assertive. He is an inspiration. Recently, my younger son also was diagnosed with mild autism. I immediately took this collage out in a moment of sadness. It made me feel hopeful. If God can work miracles with M, he will do it with D too. God's power and reassurance through art, never ceases to amaze me.
