A walk in the rain

My little boy Drake, is the most unique character I know. Drake was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome a couple of years ago and while yes, this provides for many challenges, it also provides a unique view on life. I want to share some of the lighter side to having a child with Asperger's, maybe if you have challenges like his in your family, you'll be able to see. See that life is hard sometimes, but it doesn't have to always be. Enjoy! Jessica

Drake walks to school most mornings with his step-Dad, it's not quite a mile away. He seems to enjoy the independence and his step-Dad gets some exercise as well. While I normally would have driven to pick him up in the afternoons, the last few weeks he has insisted upon walking home too. I love that he is showing some signs of wanting to be more independent and I can use a little exercise as well! Mom straps on her walking shoes and speed walks to meet him about a block away from the school. Today was a little different though.
We have had rain on and off her for the last couple of days and I wanted to take advantage of the cooler temps and decided to risk getting a little wet for my exercise. It sprinkled on and off while I walked toward the school and I enjoyed the silence of our suburban neighborhood as the rain muffled any sounds you might otherwise hear. I made it to the corner where I meet Drake as it decided to start raining a little more. Drake trudged down the street towards me slower than usual (he walks with a strange gait kind of on the balls of his feet and rolls along his insteps, not unusual for Asperger's), the rain slowing him down. I walked up the street and greeted him, suggesting we walk a little faster as to not get completely soaked. (It's the southwest, umbrellas are for sissys) "Why?", he asked in typical Drake fashion. "As to not get absolutely drenched...", I replied grabbing his hand, after he handed me his backpack. I swung it up on my back and led the way, head down to semi-protect my glasses.
What 11 year old boy do you know that would be perfectly happy to be led down the street by the hand, by his Mom no less? You're right, I don't know any either, but then again, not every 11 year old boy is Drake. We trudged through the rain with Mom and son hand in hand, Drake chattering loudly behind about the movie "Chicken Little" (one of his faves) and quoting the lines. He then started asking impossible questions about people being able to "fall up" (instead of falling down) or things to get "blown down" (instead of blowing up), thus is the chatter of everyday. "Drake, how was your day?", Mom might ask. "What if your head blew up?", would be a pretty typical response from Drake. I don't know how much he gets picked on, I don't know how he interacts with kids at school, but if he's still happy and singing random songs at the end of the day...then I guess we're still good!
We walked through the rain and made it home before it REALLY started to pour. The clap of thunder cracked outside and the sky opened up anew. Drake sat quietly on his floor finishing his favorite subject of homework (that would be Math of course) oblivious to the commotion outside. When I asked him if wanted to accompany me to fetch his siblings about an hour later, he declined, content to dig through his bucket of Lego's. "You're not scared of the thunder?", I asked making sure he would be fine. "Of course not!", he called over his shoulder concentrating on his Lego project. I shook my head knowing he would, of course he would. That's my boy, Drake.