DEALING with a special child, or children, is not an easy task. Rather, it offers life-long challenges.
It’s also a life-long adjustment in the family that over-thinking mom and dad would even be tempted to ask each other: Who will take care of our special one if we’re no longer around?
Autism. Mental retardation. Developmental delay. Speech or language impairment, among other multiple disabilities, you can name it.
Certainly, parents with a child, or siblings, with a disability often have more stress placed on their relationship than parents of typically developing children.
However, it has also been shown that having a child with a disability can also bring a couple closer together. The main key(s) to keeping your marriage or relationship strong are open communication and spending a great deal of time together.
Families must “learn to tolerate, accept and hopefully celebrate children who are not what they originally had in mind.”
Communities also play a part by accepting and providing opportunities for the child.
“We’re so lucky that we’re born normal. So, it’s a big thing for us to be able to share something for kids in the community with special needs,” said Jett Yaranon, president of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Cagayan de Oro, Inc. , when the group held “Camp Pag-ibig 2019” last February 23 at the City Hall ground, Cagayan de Oro City.
Alongside BBJaycee Jerryl Micko Jabiniao, Jaycee Aben Garlan, PP JCI Virgilio Jose Cabanlet, BB Jaycee James Eduard Mandi and BB Jaycee Aaron Guco, to name a few, the Pag-Ibig campers invited City Vice Mayor Rainier Joaquin Uy and City Social Welfare and Development (CSWD) head Maria Liza G. Corpuz in the meaningful activity.
They let the children participate in “A Hero in You” drawing contest and present a Jollibee Kids Party. There were also “Cupcake Decorating” and JCI Got Talent segments to entertain the kids, among others.
“It’s a joy to make a difference. No matter how little we do, it goes a long way,” further said Yaranon, a former varsity player of Xavier University (XU) senior basketball team and now an employee of Metro Bank, Cagayan de Oro.