Accepting Asperger's

For the first time, the complaining and whining of other individuals on the spectrum is finally starting to get to me. It's like being a skateboard fanatic HATING other skateboard fanatics. I've accepted being on the autism spectrum because I can't help it; that's just how I was born. God's roll of the dice was against my odds. It has been in so many ways. But I've been blessed in others. I have a loving stepdad, I still have my loving mother, I have a college degree (that I'm finding paying back is becoming difficult) and a life ahead of me. When I read this person's blog post, it made me feel better about myself in so many ways. I know that I am far from alone.

But it's given me a voice to help others. It's given me passions. It's like what Ralphie May once said: "God's officially given us lemons, let's make lemonade." I've had my share of adversity in my life, but I've found ways of overcoming them. For instance, I tend to be a good social networker, adults my mother's age and senior citizens adore me, I'm a bit analytical, which allows me to also jump into a social scene and feel comfortable shaking hands and making small talk (something I do poorly) and in general not so much be the life of the party but instead play social diplomat, for lack of a better term. I want to put that into practice when I relocate over the winter.

True, there are some days where I wish I had an opportunity to see what it would be like to be neurotypical. For one day, I'd like to know what it is like not having certain sensory issues, what it would be like to have more self-esteem, what it would be like to date more often.

But I have a lot of big goals, and those goals are only made stronger by having autism. I want to be America's first elected official who is open about being on the spectrum, (as I've said before, I look up to the late Harvey Milk). I want to speak at the Democratic National Convention in a few years. I want to help parents navigate the tricky waters that come with having a child on the autism spectrum. And I want to help those who don't have autism too. Some of my political goals (if I am lucky enough to get into elected office) are to create an environment that is friendly towards job creation, find ways to fix crumbling infrastructure, making honesty and transparency in government mandatory and attend to the greatest needs of the communities I would serve.

We all have challenges in our lives and I just happened to have been born with a big one. I've heard the old "Autism doesn't define me. I define it" lingo, but as I've said, I redefine what it is to be an American twenty-something with autism.

I can't quit now-I've come too far. That being said, I do need to refocus my efforts onto productive things.