I don't know how to title this....

My little sister, Margaret, has one daughter and one son. Her daughter, Meghann, is profoundly autistic. She's a sweet child, but she will never speak, never be able to live on her own, never take a normal place in society.

Margaret wrote something once about Meghann's autism, and read it to me on the phone. It made me cry. I asked her to mail it to me. Here is what she sent, the entire email. She welcomes thoughts and opinions, and so do I.

June,

I went to Meghann's school for an IEP meeting and afterward the principal and I were talking. She said that I should write a book. I thanked her but told her that I really wasn't a writer. That night I went to bed and when I woke up the next morning this was on my mind so I immediately wrote it down. It could be a preface, an introduction, or a dedication for a book. If I'm never able to write another thing quite like this it really wouldn't matter because I'm proud of what I was able to write and in some ways it says everything.


A Box of Dolls


It's just a simple cardboard box with a lid. It was made to hold copier paper. This one is full of dolls. Some are porcelain dolls. Some are soft dolls. There are a few collectible bean bag toys and there is even a "Kewpie" doll that at one time belonged to my grandmother.


When I was seven or eight years old I believed that when I grew up I would have a little girl of my own. I started collecting dolls and later storing them away for her. When my daughter, Meghann, was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, I soon realized that she would never understand what was meaningful to me. And so, the dolls sit in a box in the top of my closet waiting for a little girl to love them the way my little girl, my Meghann, probably never will.


We all have dreams and goals that we store away for our children, whether it's in a box, a bank account, or just in our hearts and minds. This is for all the families who have had to alter their dreams because of Autism.


That's all there is for now. As I said before, I think I'll have to be a little further down the road to see the forest for the trees. Until then, recently I heard a profound quote on television. You'll be surprised who said it, but under his circumstances, I'm not.


It just goes to show that even the smallest voice can make a contribution.----Jim Carrey