Independence

Last week, I picked up a couple of my former students and we went to the mall together. We also had lunch and then stopped at a couple of other stores. It was a wonderful day and I hope we can do it again soon.

I learned a lot from my student, K, who has Asperger’s Syndrome. K is now 30 years old and graduated from my class 12 years ago. When she told me how independent she was, I was amazed and so proud of how well she is doing. I wanted to share some of the things she shared with me.

Transportation: She is able to ride the public bus or take Lyfft or Uber to get where she needs to go. The bus stop is about a mile from her house, but she doesn’t mind walking there if she has nowhere she has to be at a specific time. She has learned the bus routes and how to get transfers to different buses. I had to admit to her that I had no idea how to ride our public bus system, how much it costs, or even the routes to take anywhere. I think it is really brave of her to figure all of this out on her own!

Eating Out/In – K uses an app on her phone to get food delivered to her house. She pays a monthly fee and can order food to be delivered to her house when she wants some.

Groceries – K has another app that lets her order groceries from different stores in the area indicated on her app.

Doctor’s Appointments – K finds a way to get where she needs to be. Either her mother, friends, or a driver will get here where she wants to go.

K is very personable and willing to try new things. When I asked her if she wasn’t ever too scared to do these things, but she said that if someone wanted something bad enough, they were willing to do anything.

I love talking to K because she has such insight into the world around her. There is nothing fake or hidden in anything she says. She is very caring and thoughtful and works hard to make others comfortable. Because of her personality, she likes to help others and it seems like everyone she meets loves her!

I wish there was a way that she could be around others with disabilities and teach them things that she has learned. She has so much information that is worth sharing with others and I’m going to look into ways that I can get her to share it with others. I know that I was totally impressed with all that she knows, and I know that others will be too.

Photo by chuttersnap on Unsplash