Oh those impulses

Anyone who has a child with autism knows first hand how impulsive they can be. There was a time that i had to watch everything he did, especially while we were out in public. On the days that I HAD to take him with me to the grocery store, I had to watch his every move, or he would sample anything he wanted. I would see a friend I know at the store and we would try to say our hellos, meanwhile I would be watching him like a hawk so he didnt just open up a box of crackers or crack open a bag of chips. A few times I heard the familiar PSST! and noticed that he was opening soda bottles. This was a phase thank God, but it went a little further than that. Zach had a real obsession with urinating in any bathroom he could find. Now it took us a long time to get him potty trained so that was one obsession that I allowed. Everywhere he went he had to urinate in their bathroom, and that included every Dr. Office, every store, every house I took him to, everywhere. So one day he and I are out taking a walk through the neighborhood. It was a beautiful summer day and people were sitting on their porches and people were walking their dogs, just a really nice night. So we start walking and lo and behold I see an old discarded toilet sitting in someone's front yard. Dear Lord, Of all things. I spotted it about one hundred feet away and so did he. I guess the people were
Putting the toilet out for the garbage the next day. So here I am bear hugging him past the toilet seat. He was pulling away trying to use it and I am laughing and panicking at the same
time. People were staring at us, because he was not a toddler by any means, he was at least eleven or twelve and I am holding him for dear life walking past the toilet. I finally get
him past it with every bit of strength that I could muster, meanwhile trying to explain to him
why there was a toilet in the front yard in the first place, which I admit was a little
strange to me as well. So we keep walking and we walk on past a porch with about six or seven
girls ( early twenties ) sitting out there smoking their cigs and trying to act intimidating.
There was a little girl about four years old on the porch with them. AS we are walking by
Zach notices a jump rope lying in the middle of the side walk. He picks it up and very gently
tosses it off the sidewalk into the grass, because he felt it should not be laying on the
side walk and he was right. So we continue to walk and then I hear it " Oh sure, yeah don't
worry about it no problem " Now I have been around along enough to know when I am hearing
sarcasm, and this was definitely dripping with sarcasm. If Zach had done something wrong, I
would be the first person to admit it and reprimand him. He gently moved a jumprope that
should not have been laying in the middle of the sidewalk in the first place. Now this little
bully waited until were at least two houses past her porch before she started saying
something. I am sure she was trying to impress her friends, but she didn't realize that you
don't F with the mother of an autistic child, so I spin around and yell " What did you just
say?" So Miss toughie with her tattoos all over her neck said " he just whipped my daughters
jumprope and he didnt even say he was sorry." I repeated in my most sarcastic tone "whipped
her jumprope? He moved it off the street and your lucky I didn't trip on it." I then said "
he has autism what is your excuse? And if anyone of you on that porch has a problem with what
he just did come down off that porch now and we will settle it QUICKLY" I also whipped off
my Jackie O sunglasses for a dramatic effect. Well not one of those girls had a problem with
what I said, they all sat there tongue tied and little miss bully who's bark was much worse
than her bite, yells " Whatever! Have a nice Day " To which I reply " Yeah that's what I
thought" Now could I have handled that better? Probably, but it felt so good to put that
little snot in her place and maybe she will think twice before she opens her mouth and tries
to show off for her friends who obviously thought she was wrong and did nothing to try to back
her up. So I went home, mad as a hornet and told my fiance about the whole experience. He
asked me to please re-route my walk at least for a little while.