Shhh.... it's a secret

Jared started high school this year.

And like any of the other times that we have had a major transition, both he and I were anxious. 
Well not just anxious.... we were FULL of life-changing, can't catch my breath, when will this be over ANXIETY!

We have had these huge transition moments before -
going from home to special ed preschool
moving from preschool to elementary school
moving from elementary school to middle school
and then middle school to high school.

Each time both Jared and I .... well let's just say.... had some issues.

I get nervous for my other two children when they have big life changes like these.  But it is easier for them and for me to deal with.
They can verbally express what is happening.
They can let me and others know if something is not right, or if they need more support or help.
They have friends that help them through these transitions as well.

But with Jared there is more than just the average nerves.

I have all types of things that I think about:
...what if he needs help
...what if he is picked on
...what if he doesn't know how to get to a class
...who will watch over him in this new situation
...who will he be able to turn to if he needs assistance
all of which is compounded by the fact that he has such difficulty with language and communication and social skill.
(Just typing this now makes me have the heavy pain in my chest.)

But here we are.
Second semester of high school... and we are doing okay.
Actually high school has been one of the easiest transitions to date.

There are several reasons that I have come up with:
1) Both Jared and I are getting more experienced with transitions.
2) We have gotten better and better of working to ease transitions by giving him short experiences with the new location prior to the actual transition.
3) High school offers more flexibility than I ever thought.
4) Some really cool things have happened for Jared at high school that have helped make this transition much easier. 
Here's just one:

Yesterday I received an email from one of the teachers that Jared has in high school.  Jared goes to this class with regular education students.  And the teacher has been so flexible and open minded and kind and welcoming. 
Here is what she emailed:
"I just want to say what a delight it has been to have Jared in my art class. Talking with his class today we came up with an idea that I wanted to run by you. We were thinking that the art class before his May 24^th run for Autism that we would throw him a surprise “good luck at your race” party. Students would bring in food and drinks, we’d have balloons etc. I know this is months away, but I wanted to hear your thoughts about it, and if it is something Jared would enjoy."

I would love to live in this moment forever!

Of course I said YES to her email!  I share it today to show some of the goodness that is in this world. If you see me in the next few days and see a huge smile on my face, you know part of the reason why.
But don't forget, that for now "it's a secret"!