My nephew was born when I was eleven. I am now nineteen and he is almost eight. I was not excited to be an aunt, but hindsight is 20/20 and my nephew is the best thing that has happened to me. He was born with extensive brain damage due to oxygen deprivation, and was later diagnosed with cerebral palsy. I didn't know at the time what any of that meant, but my entire family was upset, including my older brothers, so I knew it was bad. Now that I am nineteen and majoring in special education, I know a lot about what is going on in his teeny body.
My nephew and I are not your average extended family members. I don't spell his name wrong on his birthday cards and buy him clothes in the wrong size for Christmas. I spend as much time with him as I can. Our favorite thing to do together is go to the park and play on the swings. He has such a special place in my heart and there is nothing that I wouldn't do for him. I wish so badly that he did not have cerebral palsy. I would do anything to take it away from him or to go back in time and change the way things happened. But he has cerebral palsy and there is nothing I or anyone else can do about it. I will never, ever treat him differently because of it and I wish that no one else would either.
He has a disability. So what? He drools sometimes, cries a little too loud sometimes, and loses control of his body sometimes. I would do the same thing if all my thoughts were bottled up inside of my head and I couldn't get them out. If you really wanted to watch a certain movie but your dad wasn't picking out the right one and you couldn't tell him which on you wanted, wouldn't you cry? If you had a stomachache and couldn't get your own medicine or tell your mom, wouldn't you be be upset? I know I would.
Before you stare at my nephew, I want you to know this. He can see you. Just because he can't talk doesn't mean he doesn't have thoughts. It doesn't mean he can't hear you or see you. He can get his feelings hurt, too, just like anyone else in this world. He doesn't want to be stared at.. If you have a question, ask. It doesn't hurt to ask. My family loves our little man unconditionally and we will all answer questions. We will tell you that he has cerebral palsy, that he is just a little different than you on the outside but he has normal thoughts and feelings on the inside. He can't walk or talk but he knows exactly what is going on. Cerebral palsy is physic I am sure anyone else in our shoes feels the same way about their family members.
