I’ve been battling a really nasty cold since I got back from the frigid temperatures of New York in early January.  I’ve been taking all kinds of over-the-counter medications and I think I’m feeling better but it comes and goes.  I know I’m not contagious so that’s a good thing; right now, it’s mostly a stuffy nose and a slight cough.  There’s no way I would miss the opportunity to spend another day at the Alden School.

Morning came early again and my alarm went off at 6:30am.  We (Ethan, Alan, and I) were in the lobby by 7:15am and at the school by 7:45am.  Our first class came into the meeting area promptly at 8am and we were off.  This morning was filled with little “miracles” as we watched students with autism have a “Gerstalt Moment” – that instant where things “clicked” and they understood the “mystery” of the trick and not just the movements required to perform it.  We watched them self-correct so they could do each movement in the right way so the magic would happen.  And I watched one exceptional young non-verbal autistic man teach another classmate the trick.  Does it get any better than that?

Class after class, magical moment following magical moment – this was an inspiring way to begin a Thursday….and two days in Jacksonville that I will never forget!