Nat-of-all-Trades: An Autism Job Story
“When our kids have disabilities, on the one hand we believe that fantasy, dreams, and plans are no longer possible,” Susan Senator writes in her September 30, 2009 blog post, “My FaNATasy.”
Susan is a writer and mother to three boys, including Nat, 19, who has autism. She uses her writing talents “to make sense of autism and find a way to my oldest son, and help others with this challenge of autism at the same time.” Besides her blog, she has written numerous articles and two books: “Making Peace with Autism” and “The Autism Mom’s Survival Guide”, to be published in the spring of 2010.
In “My FaNATasy” Susan points out that her fantasies and dreams for Nat have just been modified…”dreams shaped by what Nat is like.”
She writes, “My fanatasy is that Nat would be able to get a job similar to one of the 5 (five!) jobs he now has. So far he has learned to do cafeteria-serving; janitorial stuff; making boxes; delivering messages; and filling orders for classrooms, as well as his volunteer work with Meals on Wheels. My Natty is a Nat-of-all-trades, at least of trades that many 19-year-olds find for themselves, disabled or non.
The best part is, Nat loves to work. Nat does not even know that his work is “beneath” him. Therefore, it is not.”
To read the complete blog post, click here. To view Susan’s website and read more, click here.
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