I believe, in general, that I am a “glass half-full” personality. At least that is what I am blaming my overly optimistic hope for a smooth ride forward for Micah as he learns to be able to communicate openly using Spelling to Communicate (S2C). The reality has been an intense roller coaster with a hoped for destination, but an unknown journey to get there. We have learned in the past month that Micah has a photographic memory; that day was a high. We have also learned that the challenge of focusing to communicate via the letter board can be exhausting for Micah, which has led him to just say no some days to even trying. Those days are the lows.
I feel like Micah has lost so many years, that I want him to charge forward now that we know how very bright he is, but his intelligence comes with a free will as well as a body that does not respond to him like our bodies respond to us. His battle is hard to watch and sometimes places him in danger as he elopes to escape the pressure of the fight. This past weekend he bolted out of the car when we arrived for his S2C session. He ran across the street into a neighbor’s yard, and began digging in the leaves and dirt frantically. I could not convince him to get up, nor can I physically move him when he refuses. As time ticked on, my fear of the homeowners calling the police increased. Micah’s S2C Practitioner, Beth saw that I was not making progress in getting Micah to comply, so she joined us and with her help he was finally willing to stand and walk back across the street. When given the choice of going into Beth’s office for his S2C session or back in the car, he chose the car. The silence on the ride home seemed louder than usual.
To say that I was discouraged is a huge understatement. Micah’s future rests on moving him forward, but he holds the keys to the next steps and sometimes the keys seem too hard for him to touch, much less embrace. He told me tonight he would be willing to do Spelling with me tomorrow and I am going to try to hold him to his word as he has been unwilling to participate for the past three days. Tonight I lack the energy to continue to encourage him to connect. Tomorrow we shall try again to unlock the vault of his brilliant mind.
Jan Lessard Peightell October 15, 2024
*Postscript: Micah agreed to what ended up to be about a seven minute S2C session before he wanted to end. I said OK but that I had one more question for him. I asked if he remembered the name of the company his father worked for (17 years ago). Micah quickly spelled out Energy North. HIGH!
Photo is of Micah on a walk following our session today.