Hidden Blessings - by Jill Renee Solomon

This is a picture of Blake. He is the son of a very dear friend of mine. I’ve watched Jill wrestle with more than one crazy, unexpected path in her life and she always manages to come out on top; holding firmly to the hand of her Lord. I love her positive, quirky outlook. And I love her writing. Hopefully, this is the first of many guest blogs. Short, but very sweet.

Here she is:

“Let me share just a little something with you. 

Blake stays at my house on Wednesday nights and I take him to Sherwood on Thursday mornings. It is a good way for me to remain visible with the staff there at Sherwood and it is fun to see Blake get excited to be with friends. Last Thursday, for a number of reasons, we were running a bit late and Blake urged me to move faster every five or ten minutes.

“It’s OK, Son. They wait at the door for 15 minutes. I’ll have you there in plenty of time.” This seemed to satisfy him, and we rode in silence for a few minutes. Blake reached down to turn on the radio and looked at me, waiting for me to say, “Go ahead.”  I told him to find one station and leave it on that station because going back and forth between stations gave me a headache. Blake found a station and listened for a few minutes. He got bored with it and changed the station, and then once again. “Honey”, I said, “find a station and stick to it. My ears are starting to hurt.”

Blake decided to turn the radio off and talk with me, instead. He asked if I knew of a particular radio station and I said, yes, I did. He then asked me what kind of music they played. I said, “Hmmm. What kind do you think they play?”

He replied, “I Can Only Imagine.” Suddenly, Blake had his imaginary microphone in his hand, his best singing voice on, and he began singing, soulfully, with his face lifted skyward, two full choruses of that song. What a blessing that was to my mama heart! 

Later, as I went through my day, I thought about that sweet serenade, and I thought to myself, what if I had not been Blake’s mom? I would have missed that! And, many, many wonderful parenting moments that only a parent with a different-abled child can experience. I wondered if I would have the same capacity for compassion if Blake were not my child. In fact, I wondered where I’d be if I had not trusted that my Lord had the strength to be by my side as we journeyed this path that is autism. If I had not come to see the blessing this guy has brought to me and others. 

Sometimes our greatest challenges end up being our greatest blessings. I am so thankful for this child I call Son.

And just in case you’re wondering, I am equally thankful for my other two children who are also remarkable people and who each bring me the greatest joy of my life.”

By Jill Renee Solomon