My sweet, loving, impulsive little boy, Jeremiah decided not to wait any longer for Mama to cut his hair, so he attempted to do it himself today. I was making breakfast and all of a sudden he hopped in front of me, looking quite proud of himself.....Of course, first I was shocked. Followed by frustration that he felt he wasn't able to wait long enough for me to cut his hair, and then annoyance at myself for not following through and cutting his hair a little more promptly.And he looked so proud of himself. That he had did it all by himself. Jackson couldn't help but laugh at Jeremiah's hair and even Jeremiah realized that his hair looked a little silly and laughed, too. He knows he is loved, and as soon as breakfast was over, I lovingly trimmed his hair, which was not easy with the huge chunk he had hacked out of the front. But in the end it didn't look too bad, and Jeremiah learned a little lesson in being patient, and in being more firm with anything he really needs us to do for him.
I recently discovered a very meaningful and eye-opening song that speaks to me about my dear son, Jeremiah, who was labeled in public school in 2nd grade as gifted, but was also impatient and also slow.....his giftedness lay in being a perfectionist and wanting to complete whatever he started...and only doing it the best that he could do.
If the teacher wanted him to hurry, he became upset and teary-eyed. He never has liked to be rushed. And his fresh-out-of-college 2nd grade teacher threatened him every day by saying, "If you think this is tough, just wait until you deal with 3rd grade". Jeremiah often came home and locked himself up in his room and cried for hours. He became sad and despondant about going to school. He dreaded going every day.
So we made the decision to bring our son back home and educate him in safety and love., and soon afterwards he thrived. He loved learning again, and he was focused and excited. His light was back! He read like crazy, and wrote notes in his daily journal, and worked on his comic strips, "Lightning Man & Power Man'.
It was so exciting to see my son back again as a whole person.
And then just 5 short months later it was all taken away. He and his twin brother and Daddy were hit from behind by a van going at least 40 miles and hour, by a man who was driving while reading a map, who never slowed down or stopped.
After this man hit the van that my sons and husband were in, my husband was knocked unconcious and his van rolled into the path of an on-coming 18-wheeler.
Jeremiah's Daddy suffered serious arm and brain injuries, his brother suffered from 5 broken ribs and a broken arm when he was tossed out of the van and pinned underneath.
And Jeremiah, our bright and shining child, was thrown over 30 feet across the road. He sustained so much damage to his face and body, mostly to his face, that over 80 stitches were required. And worst of all, he experienced a traumatic brain injury.
We thought he'd be ok and be 'normal', but every day we discover the damage caused on that horribly tragic day on March 14, 2005. He struggles every day to recall information, to focus, to use common sense, and thought processes. He is very tough on himself as usual, and it's so hard on him because he knows he has been 'changed' since the accident and it frustrates him. Just in the last 2 months, he has been enjoying reading more, but his joy of writing has not returned.
It breaks my heart to see him struggle and to know he realizes he is struggling and that he can't get back what he used to be like. It's as if he can see his old self through a mist, but when he tries to reach through and grab that image, it always drifts out of reach.
I suppose what this blog post is all about, is me realizing how grateful I am that we have the opportunity to homeschool our children, because if Jeremiah was in a public school now, he would surely be labeled and left behind, or worse, singled out by teachers and other children. He would have to take medicine, like those who have ADHD, just so he would stay calmer and duller, all so that the teachers wouldn't have to deal with him, or really get to know what a truly beautiful and special little boy Jeremiah is.
"My Tribute to Jeremiah"
(Click Above)