Spending time at the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Preserve
Like about 90% of Americans, I’ve spent the two months under a stay-at-home order. Being introverted this would have appealed to me 15 years ago. I would have happily worked, read, and watched movies from my tiny one-bedroom apartment. I lead a different life than that younger, thinner guy. I’m a husband and father to an energetic special needs child.
Cristian, like many autistic children, thrives on routine. Until recently, the school bus picked him up five days a week at 7:15. For Cristian, school was about more than basic math and advanced crayon. Cristian’s school, the Gersh Academy, structured his schedule so his ABA, OT, PT, and Speech therapies were part of his weekly schedule, per his IEP. When he’s on a routine, Cristian is a cute five-year-old boy — disrupt his routine, and cute goes flying out the window.
My son’s world changed on March 15th, when Nassau County closed their schools, because of the pandemic. Like many parents, Esther hoped it would be a short-term thing. As a news junkie watching the numbers rise and the daily news briefings, I knew he wasn’t going back to school anytime soon.
The Pandemic is an unprecedented event, and for two weeks, schools scrambled putting together plans for virtual learning. Esther and I put together our own plan to keep Cristian engaged, entertained, and to minimize regression. Besides being on the spectrum, Cristian is ADHD, the hyperactivity is more challenging than the autism. Esther and I have sought outlets for his excess energy — it’s become more challenging in the era of social distancing.
A well-planned trip to the playground, he played for 40 minutes before the rain started.
The first days were easy. I’d time his trips to parks so he could run around the playground before the locals came out for their morning walks or before it started raining. Two weeks later, I took Cristian to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Preserve; it was big and empty or taking him with me to the cemetery. As I paid respects to my Dad, on what would have been his 94th birthday, Cristian ran around a large, empty grass field, enclosed by iron gates. Sometimes you have to get creative.
Burning off some energy early on a Monday morning.
I’ve spent the past two months home with Cristian, juggling, working from home with his schoolwork. Morning Zoom classes and therapy sessions part of our daily routine. Like most people, I can’t wait until our lives return to normal. The challenge is opening our society in a responsible way and hoping Cristian’s regression is minimal.
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