Wearily we tread, not knowing what challenges we will face and where the next assault will come from, and in what form. There will be brief, intermittent periods of respite, although often this respite will conclude with an ass-ailment on all fronts.

We must be vigilant, for we know our duty has no end, and our rewards are not immediate or apparent. We will shift from task to task, being harried into making mistakes. Sometimes,  if we are lucky, we can recover from our misstep, but in many cases we will fall, collapsing in a heap until we can recover. Or in other cases, we must ignore our own hurts, our own important tasks, to comfort the other fallen, who have not yet developed those skills to face the challenges that face us.

The toll is enormous. Some of us will take longer to recover. Many of us will fail, many times, and will  grieve that failure, becoming so absorbed in that failure, to forget what is still salvageable, and what still can be done. The battle will still rage on, regardless on how well we cope, regardless of how many tasks we are still focusing on. Many of us will soldier on, eyes front, not taking notice on the affect they may have on others, not noticing that their relationships are crumbling, forgetting crucial, overlooked needs. Yet we must not forget, that us the soldiers, need to rest, so to recover and move on so they can continue.

Bands will be formed as a form of support, and if that band is a strong supportive group it will flourish and prove to be beneficial for its members, but in many cases these bands will deteriorate into bickering and dissent, and sadly fall away. A scape goat will be identified, court marshaled, and exiled from the band. Such as it is, this is in our nature as humans.

There will also be shortages. Those that control supplies will grandly claim that we will all be cared fall, to find that they have overlooked some key shortages in resources.

Those who have recruited us to their camp will be often poorly trained in the management of their resources, and passing on their skills, although it is their duty to do so. However, there will be the few that stand out like bright stars in the night.

Heroes rise in our campaign, those who seem to have endless energy, vigor and emotional strength and fortitude, those who we look up to and wonder how they do it. The hero will shrug nonchalantly, claiming to do what any other person will do, raising their esteem in our eyes. Don’t forget, even our heroes need our support, or they too, will fall, when we least expect it.

I bet you thought I was talking about war, right? If only. I am talking about being a Mum to a family affected by Autism. I divert, I intervene , I comfort, I worry. The list is endless. The behavioral issues to address are challenging, and they evolve. The juggling act is never-ending, I work part-time, yet i feel there is not enough time for my domestic duties, my health and leisure time, unless I carefully organize and schedule my week, day by day. for some reason, my coping mechanism has been to seek out the junk food, the sugary stuff, so I’ve had to learn to ration these supplies, so I can continue to recover my fitness. this week, to exercise, I have been exercising after nine, as this is the time of the day that I have the opportunity or the motivation to do so.

I must note, however, the victories, the rays of hope that the battle will ease. Chook Whisperer has improved in leaps and bounds with his communication, and his teacher reports great improvements with his communication. I still have to race to keep up with him from the car to the school, and vice versa. When I don’t have the strength or energy to keep up Magpie or the Princess P will take up the chase. They are a great support to me, they help our Chook Whisperer out of love, although it gets hard for them.

It also seems that Magpie has some issues of his own that need to be faced. These will be talked about later, once we have had a chance to identify these needs  and to get things started.

There is hope that war will end, but in the world of Autism, our fight is endless, fight on my fellow battlers. We can build great things.