Link: My Son and I Don’t Do Well with Chaos—and That’s Okay

[sonia]

My Son and I Don’t Do Well with Chaos—and That’s Okay by Katie Rose Pryal. "We hate surprises. What we need is to be able to set our expectations properly. A monthly column about family life, mental illness, and raising disabled kids as a disabled parent."

A lovely story about adopting a cat in an autistic-friendly way, interrupted by an employee's lack of flexibility about timing, with a happy ending.

It contains this casual bit of (living with) sexism, completely unremarked. "I have to do something. I have to try. “Give me your laptop,” I say to my husband. “They’ll listen if the email is from a dad.”"

Comments

[silveradept]

I noticed that part, and went "And it's sad that it will be likely to work if it comes from a dad," as I went through the article. The story was good, except for the inflexibility and how things were handled.

Great essay gave me tears

[jesse_the_k]

When KRP describes her reconciliation with her mom:

She did the best she could. I wanted her to know that I understood. My mother’s life as a child was a nightmare of Elm Street proportions. She couldn’t be as patient with me as she might have liked, but that’s okay. And because of the life she gave me, I have the gift of patience for my kids. And, now that I’m older, patience for her as well.

Ah! That level of kindness is powerful.