Autism... In My Family (1)

I have been silent for quite a while now. Been really busy with work and matters of the  home. Have always wanted to jot down some of the updates and happenings around me but time clearly envy me… To catch a decent 40 winks is also hard some times. But I guess that is life, kan?

So, this time I wish to share about the one thing that has been in mine and hub's minds -- autism and our kids. Yes, autism. A.U.T.I.S.M. Cara nyebutnya, O-TEE-ZEM. Many of you may already know its meaning. Some may not. In fact, some of mine and hub's family members do not really understand what it is. When they hear the word 'autism', some have this picture in their minds -- the image of a mentally retarded person. Well, close, but not close and true enough.

Autism is a complex developmental disability that affects the way children communicate and relate to the world around them. (Chewahh… That's me trying to sound like an expert, when in fact it is just an excerpt I saw in one of the many books that I read! Haha..). I got that definition from a book "How to Help Your Autistic Spectrum Child", by Jackie Brealy and Beverly Davies. It is clearly shorter and much easier to understand compared to others that I have read.

Now… What is the deal with autism and my family? BIG deal. You see, both of my twin boys have been diagnosed with autism. Yes, my two wonderful charming princes -- Ryan Asyraff and Ryan Aimar -- are both autistic. Based on the scale the experts gave, Asyraff is moderate, Aimar is mild. So what, you may say… Well, to people who are not in the shoe of people like me who have a child or children diagnosed with autism, no big deal. But for people like me, parents who have a child or children diagnosed as one, BIG DEAL. Yes, it is. I will start by telling you the history of us and autism… NEXT… :) Stay tuned...

Actions vs. Words

"Actions speaks louder than words," they say... Well, very true indeed. It is proven, to me, again, for the gazillionth time today. Not that I don't believe the saying, I do! It's just that sometimes I choose to ignore it, especially when it involve some negativity, because I just hate negative feelings. Negative feelings pull me down, and I don't like being pulled down. But then again, sometimes you just can't get away from it. From having that bad feelings...

I am not naive, if that's what you're thinking.. No. I am NOT. It's just that sometimes I would rather choose (or at least try) to be nice to people, and not be judgemental. I do that because I would like for people to treat me like that too. But unfortunately, more often than not, people take me as being too nice, and that I can be easily taken for granted. Now, that crosses me! Being nice doesn't mean people can take us for granted. Being nice doesn't mean we are weak. No.

I have just discovered recently, that we can never trust no one. Sometimes people are just too 'kiasu'. You take them under your wings; but be careful, for you will never know that one day they can just change and stab you from behind. I just had that experience. I still couldn't believe that it happened. After all that I have done - the guidance I gave, the knowledge I shared, the skills I showed - I found out that later I had to put my guard up because things are not going as well as I thought it would be. That I can get burned if I go on do what I do - nurturing.

As a sister, I thought I was showing the way. As a mother, I thought I was sharing the experience. As a friend, I thought I was giving the right guide. I was wrong. I mean, I did the right thing but to the wrong crowd... How did I know about this? Well, the above phrase clearly states so. Plus, I have my trusted observers.

So, again, ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS. Therefore, be careful. Be mindful. And on top of all, be bold... Because when things like this happen, it can cut you deep and the last thing you will want to do is fall down and crumble. You will need that BOLDNESS, all that STRENGTH you can get to get back up again and fight back!

May God bless us all... Ameen. :)

Hoping for A Better Day Tomorrow...

I bumped into this music video of Sami Yusuf while browsing Facebook today. The song title is "Asma Allah". It is a very nice, soothing song. It moved me. I had tears in my eyes while listening to it.

I have been feeling down lately. Not quite sure why, but it's there. I have no idea how it got into me but it's there. What frustrates me more is I don't seem to be able to overcome it. It has been almost a week. As far I can think of, things are good at home, or so I thought... My children are fine (except for my little darling Rose who has been under the weather since the last few days but I don't think it caused it). Hubby is doing OK, at least that's what I see. Our relationship is good, no major arguments. Office is also good, again, or so I thought... I have been doing some cleaning with my office files and folders since the feeling started. (I am like that. I have this obsession to cleaning things around me when I feel tensed or stressed out).

May be it is just temporary. I guess every now and then we will have such a feeling in us. I am just hoping that this 'down' feeling will go away soon... Today is Friday. I would like to enjoy my weekend with my loved ones peacefully, without having to carry this uncomfortable feeling around...

Anyway, to all of you who read this, I hope you will enjoy the song as much as I do. If you are a Muslim, the song is really meaningful, the lyrics are wonderful. Understand it. But if you are not a Muslim, well, there is nothing wrong about enjoying some good music, isn't it? The music video came with English subtitle, so it is easier to understand. I don't speak/read Arabic myself. So I usually rely on subtitles to help me to understand Arabic songs.

Anyway, have a great weekend... (And please pray that I will have one too!)

Lack of sleep a 'ticking time bomb' for health - Yahoo! Health

Read about this SLEEPING thing on Yahoo! Health and I hope you would benefit from it too... Just click on the title and you'll be forwarded to the webpage.

Enjoy reading! :)

It's Been A While...

It has been a long time since I visited this place. Geez.. It made me thinking why did I have one in the first place.. Well, my intention of having this blog was, firstly, to share whatever information I wish to share, really, whatever the topics may be.. Kids, health, personal, love, life, etc.

I'll try to be more active from now. (See the word? TRY? Yes, I will try, promise!) :)

So, here is the first topic I'd like to share for today. About SLEEPING. (Am lacking of it, I know for sure. Been having trouble sleeping lately). I got this on Yahoo! Health, and again, it made me thinking (yes, again)... I realised that after reading the article, I need to be really serious about looking after my health so that I can be strong and healthy and live longer and see my beautiful children grow up and have family and have children of their own and hug my grandchildren! Yes. I need to do that. InsyaAllah, with the determination and Allah's blessing, hubby and me would be able to do that... InsyaAllah and Ameen...

So, here is the article (see my next posting). Enjoy reading!