While I was sitting down at my desk thinking about what I wanted to write about for my research paper, I received a phone call from my cousin, Ian, who is twenty years old and has suffered from severe autism since he was born. Hearing how happy he was about his schooling, the activities he participates in, his excitement for me to come home and more made me realize that just because he suffers from this unfortunate disease does not mean he is any different from myself, my friends, or anyone in society for that matter. That sparked an idea for my research paper for this course, which is “How do children and young adults with autism cope with societal life today?”
Ian is one of the happiest human beings …show more content…
Ian and his friends are some of the happiest people I know and just need a little time and attention to get used to. He has definitely taught me a lot about myself and about others then he has probably learned from me and that is what I appreciate the most about him and his condition. He has shown me that no matter what little issue or problem I have going on in my life that I should be able to get up out of bed every morning and do everything I need to do such as attend classes, do what is asked of me on that given day for the baseball team, complete my homework, readings, essays, etc., and not complain about it because he has it a lot harder than I do and not a single complaint comes out of his mouth about going to work for the day. Ian lives a happy, simple, easy-going life that he enjoys. He does not know the concept of money, power, war, or even the internet. He only wants everyone to be happy, healthy and love each other. One of Ian’s treats is drinking soda. And when we ask him what he wants for his birthday or for Christmas, he says, “A Dr. Pepper.” We can all learn from that and see that there are definitely finer things in