SMILE's tantrums have dictated our family's outings for years. Even before his diagnosis, DAD and I have been planning trips around SMILE's unpredictable moods. But in light of his recent startling achievements, we decided to scratch something off of the "Can Never Do" list: We went to a crystal cave.
WINK was overjoyed. He's my little science guy. But SMILE vetoed the idea as soon as he heard the word "cave." Thankfully, our little guy was able to vocalize the problem with just a little prompting: bats.
"No, no, no. There are no bats," Dad said.
"And no bears," I added.
Oh. In that case...
The cave was dark in areas (we forgot a flashlight), narrow in spots (which made our tour group walk and stand real close at times), and cold. But it was also colorful and mysterious, with sensory input everywhere. SMILE peered up into "cave chimneys," stared into crevices to see stalagmites and stalactites (yes, he now knows the difference), and giggled at the hidden pictures in the rocks (the tour guide pointed out several formations that really did resemble animals). There was a moment when I felt a twinge of panic, though. The tour guide turned out all lights in our section so we could see certain rocks glow in black light. SMILE ducked his head, rocked back and forth, and started babbling to himself. I realized that, if he were to tantrum, I had no way of removing him from the group. But I calmly, squeezed his shoulders and said, "I'm right here with you, SMILE. Mommy's right here" (I've found that doing away with pronouns helps him process when he's stressed). A few minutes later, the lights came on and my beautiful boy lifted his head, unshaken and unharmed.
WINK ooh-ed and ah-ed more than anyone else on the tour. After the tour and a moderately expensive trip to the gift shop, we allowed the boys to pan for gems. WINK triumphantly held up what he called a diamond. It was a large shard of quartz. When I told him it was a crystal, he lit up brighter than the gem, and literally shook with amazement.
When the boys were each finished, I sent DAD back to the gift shop to buy another bag of dirt. SMILE flipped out. Ooop. He expected to go after panning for gems and going back to do more was not in his plan. So, I sat with my screaming son, happy for the high points, while my WINK panned his way through another bag.
{Shrug} What can you do? People are like those stones, I guess. We all need a bit more polishing to wash away the dirt sometimes.
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