I was looking through old photos at my parent’s house and found a poem that I wrote after I was diagnosed with autism. Even though I was diagnosed with autism at 4, I wouldn’t find out about autism diagnosis till 11.5. I always knew I was special, but I didn’t know why. Then, one day after school, I decided to ask my parents why I was special. That’s when they told me about having autism for the first time.
I almost forgot about this poem completely, but when I saw it I was brought me back to my early childhood in an instant.
The poem reads…
I have autism
I’m not broken
I’m not dumb
I have autism
I’m not always overwhelmed
I’m not always wanting to be by myself
I have autism
I’m different but different is okay
I’m unique and also have a unique perspective of the world that makes me special
I have autism
I’m the only person in my family to have this
I’m excited to make friends and for you to get to know me
I have autism and I hope you can accept me and others like me – We long to belong.
Thank you to everyone out there who helps our community. It means a lot.
Kerry Magro is an international speaker on the autism spectrum. A version of this blog originally appeared here.
