Autism Awareness Month

I might get on the wrong side of you here. It’s possible, even likely. But bear with me, as there’s a (hard earned) lesson.

Another Awareness Day

I’m happy to announce that today is World Awareness of Awareness Days, day…errrm, you get what I mean.

Here is a calendar to keep up with them all, as you’ll likely not be aware that there are sometimes around 20 awareness days in a month:

https://www.sticksandstoneseducation.com.au/pages/2023-calendar-of-significant-days

To me, as a parent of a daughter who lives with Autism, and inspires me every day, I feel like awareness is kind of like noticing a bad smell. You’re aware of it, you don’t do anything about it, it goes away, and gets forgotten.

Introducing Mimi

As a person who identifies as Autistic, my daughter Mimi, does not ask, and has never asked for people to be aware. She rarely asks for anything other than to be dropped off at St Vinnies on the weekend, where she volunteers, or at Christmas, to be picked up at 2am after she’s finished sound-engineering at a major event in Perth.

It’s taken me almost ten years to really “understand”, learn “how to behave” and “support”, Mimi who is now 18 years old.

Turning Japanese

When she was 11, I saw Mimi scribbling frantically on her notepad, so I enquired what she was doing. She told me that she was writing a song. I told her to wait right there, whilst I go grab my guitar.

“Oh, it’s in Japanese…”, she elaborated.

I don’t speak Japanese, nor do I play the Koto. #crushed

Mimi, born Vietnamese, speaks English, Vietnamese, and speaks and writes Anime-style songs in Japanese. #showoff

You Rock!

Many of you will know me to have a more extrovert personality. Mimi has developed such excellent coping skills, being opposite, more introvert, and living with (and managing) me every day. I’ve had to learn to hold back, be more self-aware.

Whilst I was working on a project in Sydney, I took Mimi to see the School of Rock musical, and as a vocalist and musician, she was very excited about the prospect of seeing it.

It was an amazing performance and experience. Afterwards, it was time to get a bite to eat, and I asked Mimi to make the choice. We spent the next two and a half hours wandering in and out of places, glancing at menus, moving on to the next place, and I remember just feeling more and more frustrated because she couldn’t pick one.

The next day, to my shame, Mimi said, “Hey, I’m so sorry I couldn’t pick a place to eat last night. All that sound and light had completely overwhelmed me”.

I had no idea. ?Imagine being so overwhelmed, not understood, and yet the next day you have the presence of mind, empathy, and patience to explain to someone what was going on.

Turns out we do need Awareness Days after all!

Finally, I'm Aware

When Mimi took the casual job as a sound engineer last Christmas I just remember being stunned at how resourceful, resilient and determined she had become. All that sound, all that light, all those people, all that overwhelm. Yet when I picked her up, this energetic young woman climbed into the car, and explained how she’d balanced someone’s vocal that night and made them sound awesome. I was dumbstruck.

Mimi, you are my inspiration and mentor. ?

To My Friends and Loved Ones

To all my friends who live with Autism, I love you, I am grateful for you and everything that you have taught me and shared with me.

To everyone else, there’s the lesson that I learned. It's hard to know sometimes, why you have to be aware. If we're not aware, we have no idea what we put others through.

(PS: I’m not crying, you’re crying!)