A Trip To Maryland With My Autistic Friend

I can't believe it was March 30 when I last posted a blog! Wow! Time does fly! I've got to pay better attention! Anyway, did you know that April is National Autism Awareness month?

And, since April is recognized as National Autism Awareness month, I thought I would write about a road trip I took with an autistic young man whom I was caring for at the time. Because I need to protect his privacy I will call him Roger. Roger was about 31 years old and he was nonverbal except he could say a few words. He did understand what you were saying to him and he could respond appropriately to yes and no questions. He also used a computer to communicate with others. Physically he seemed to have no disabilities. But he could not be left alone and he needed assistance with his personal care. He lived with me and I was his caregiver for about one year.

My sister, Stacey, had invited Roger and I several times to come visit her. Roger loves to travel and really wanted to go on this adventure. Roger had traveled some in the past and had done quite well. In fact, he had flown on an air plane accompanied by a caregiver. But, that was before I knew him. Finally, we found the time and got all the necessary permissions from everyone involved in Roger's care and we took off for a few days to visit my sister in Maryland. She lives on a beautiful old farm in Baldwin. Stacey is pictured on the right with her husband Johnny and two of their horses. Above is a photo of the peacock that wandered freely about the farm.

The drive to Baldwin, Maryland is 12 to 14 hours from Warren, Maine, according to traffic and other problems that arise. I know it took Roger and I 14 hours to get there. We stopped at least every two hours to move around, eat and use the facilities. Thankfully, it was summer and the weather was nice. We finally arrived that evening. Roger was so tired that he ate a quick snack and I helped him get ready for bed. He slept well.

Over the next few days we enjoyed the farm life and my sister's company. Roger loved interacting with all the farm animals. Stacey took lots of pictures of Roger holding chickens and petting other animals. Animals are so great for bridging the gap in communication. They don't care who you are. They like you if you like them and Roger sure liked them! I can't post the pictures Stacey took of Roger, but I can post photographs of my sister's farm and some of the wonderful sights Roger enjoyed. The pig's name is Charlotte. If you look closely, you can see that there are two donkeys in the picture below. Their names are Jack and Alice. They are married. They roam around the farm free and do very funny things. Roger got a big kick out of them. Who wouldn't?

We did fun things like eat supper at the picnic table on Stacey's veranda in the middle of her beautiful flower garden while listening to the cicadas. We did make a trip into Baltimore to go to church at the Greater Grace Ministry and we went out to eat. Roger handled everything quite well and I know he had a good time. So did I.

Finally it came time to go home. We had a good trip home except for one little incident. At a highway stop a man approached us in the parking lot asking for money. Although I didn't let on I was a little nervous as I was a woman alone with an autistic young man. Roger didn't seem to be upset. I gave the man a couple of bucks and he went on his way. Whew!! How do you spell RELIEF!? The rest of the trip home was uneventful.

Roger doesn't live with me anymore. But, I have to say during his time with me I learned a lot from him. I don't regret one minute of it. I had never cared for an autistic person before so Roger sort of paved the way for me. He did a great job and I will always be indebted to him. Thanks Roger and I'm glad we had that trip to Maryland!