A couple things happened and I'd like to talk about it.

Firstly, I went to Guatemala last week for a spring break with a couple of my friends. We went on a backpacking trip, taking as little as we could bring with us and went on a flow. We had an adventure.

We met several people and had conversations, learning new things. I never gave a much of a thought about it. Until I read a status from one of the people we've met, he talked about meeting us. Now, all of us are Deaf and use American Sign Language as our primary language and all of us communicated with people we have met through typing on phones and writing on notepads.

The guy who wrote about us, we met him at one party at a hostel, we were dancing to the music. The guy noticed that we are Deaf and wondered if we could hear music and we told him we couldn't hear but we can feel the music. The guy was impressed and was really curious. That night brought an amazing conversation between him and us, and he wrote that he had learned so much about the Deaf community and was amazed how nice we were.

I thought about that night as a part of our adventure and nothing more. I didn't realize how much impact we've made by being nice and willing to find ways to communicate with people of different languages. All it takes is a confidence and don't cringe at the thought of not understanding each other.

Secondly, this month is Autism Awareness Month and today, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day. I grew up with my older brother who is severely autistic; on an opposite side of the spectrum of Asgenger's syndrome. He is also Deaf.

I grew up never knowing what it is like to have a sibling that I can have a conversation with or get in a fight with. I don't have that overprotective brother or that annoying brother, although I have my cousins to fill in those parts. I have a special brother who can't really communicate with us, throws unpredictable tantrums, and laughs at random times. And that is ok because that's who he is.

I honestly never gave a thought about how it is difficult to deal with autistic people because they are so different from us in their way of thinking and perspective of the world. I have seen my parents struggling with decisions about what to do with my brother while growing up. I got a gist of how difficult it was for my parents, but never really thought deeply about it. I always thought my autistic brother as a normal part of my life. I grew up in the life with, never without, an autistic person. I learned how to understand and deal with my brother because I was raised that way. I never thought about people who grew up without meeting an autistic person, and how they feel when meeting an autistic person for the first time.

I appreciate for the autism awareness day today because people are starting to accept the fact that there are people who are cannot be (maybe not forever, who knows) cured or treated, but to gain an understanding why they are different and how we can understand them. It also makes me become aware that not all of us are the same page about autism.

Looking back at my twenty-two years with my brother, I remember moments I felt really embarrassed to be seen in public with my brother because he was not acting normal like everybody else, people were staring at us because he was making noise or throwing that unpredictable tantrum. I remember moments I felt proud of my brother when he signs something and we understood what he is saying. I remember moments that I felt really happy when he smiles, I swear his laughs are infectious. I remember moments that I was at a peace with my brother by just lying there staring at the ceiling together.

My brother and I.
I just want to say, if in the public and you notice someone is acting a bit differently, don't judge too harshly. You don't know them and don't know what are their reasons for being different.

I need this reminder sometime too.