In class today we were asked to think of a key event that has shaped who we’ve become. This was a very hard question for me, because it is hard to think of one event that shaped who I am. I kept thinking of my family situation that is different from everyone else’s so that shaped who I am and I identify with that, which is my older brother, Eric is autistic. This really has shaped who I am, but I grew with is all my life, so I tried to think of a specific event that kind of showed how this shaped me as a person, so here is my story:
Since, my older brother, Eric is autistic it was hard to have friends over, because they didn’t understand why Eric acted the way he did, but I still wanted and tried to have friends over. I remember one day my mom was driving Eric, my sister, Jill, my friend and I somewhere and Eric started to talk to my friend about a T.V. show he liked, but she didn’t know how to respond to Eric, so I tried to relate it to something that my friend liked. Later that night my mom said she was proud of me because I related “Eric’s world” to “our world”. At the time my parents were having problems with Eric’s aid and she said that is what Eric’s aids should do and she was so proud of me because I could do it and I was only 10. I was so happy that my mom said this I actually wanted to be Eric’s aid, because I thought I was so good. I think my family situation shaped who I am immensely and influenced me to want to be a special needs teacher.
Looking at this as a “historical document” and thinking if I told this story as a 10 year old I think it would be told obviously a little differently. When I was 10 I wanted to fit in, I didn’t want to be different than my friends. Now that I am older I accepted that every family is different and every family has their own challenges to overcome as a family. I think I remember this event so vitally because my mom said she was proud of me and that meant a lot to me.
A picture of my Brother, Eric, my sister Jill and I
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