Small Town News

Graduating not so vicariously, the last one leaves school

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My Turn

By the time this column hits the newsstands, I will be soaking up the sunshine and sights in Italy, secure in the knowledge the big job is done.

Our youngest daughter is now 18, and she graduated from high school June 4.

Hannah has always marched to some syncopated beat only she hears. While it might have been easier for us all if she'd marched to Souza, it has produced a young woman with a critical mind and a wicked, wicked sense of humor.

She's an excellent guitarist and a skilled writer.

By four, she knew most of the names and characteristics of dinosaurs. From "Barney' through "Land Before Time" to "Walking With Dinosaurs," she could talk about obscure raptors and well-known herbivores as well as any knowledgeable adult.

When her sister joined the Marines, it became Hannah's ambition to follow in her footsteps. Everything Sara knew about Devi Dogs, Hannah knew. Camo is still her dress of choice.

Although the grooves are still on the tarmac from when we dragged her onto the plane to England, she has lifelong friends and a wider understanding of the worjd from her years there. She's seen that there are other ways of life and other ways to do things, though she might rail against the changes.

During her freshman year in high school, it became apparent that Hannah had a neuro-processing disorder that we'd always shrugged off with, "That's just Hannah." We found out she has Asperger's, sort of autism lite.

Suddenly, so many Hannahisms were understandable: inability to tolerate change, noise, crowds, to retain times tables or to follow multiple directions. (After Hannah read this, she said "I can follow multiple directions; they just can't be vague.)

Because we had shrugged it off and accepted that Hannah was Hannah, it became a terrible strain on her. We thought she was being a teenaged Hannah when she was really struggling.

Fortunately, we found out and made changes, drastic changes. We enrolled her at Plumas Charter School, and we all began working on her high school education. We got help, and she worked hard to come to grips with the challenges she faces in daily life.

I am forever grateful to the men and women who helped Hannah find her feet again; you came in answer to my prayers.

In the ensuing years, Hannah, who was part of the G.A.T.E. program in elementary school, took her ninth grade GPA from l.something to 3.75, including college level work.

She became president of the local college writers' group, resulting in publication of "A Block of Writers." She aspires to U.C. Santa Cruz, where there is a creative writing program.

Most of Hannah's accomplishments are private and rarely shared. She writes songs and poems we only see when they are turned in. We have to listen at the door to hear her play her guitar.

But that's OK, because Hannah has done them for herself. They are hers to nurture and glory in; she doesn't have to share them to make them legitimate achievements.

It's been a joy -- and sometimes incredibly frustrating -- to watch her blossom intellectually and emotionally. Sometimes it seems centuries since we brought her home from Tahoe Forest Hospital. Mostly it was just yesterday her'dad carried her up Mount Rose in a backpack.

Hannah, it's hard to be a parent; we don't always get it right, though not for lack of trying. Dear old mumsie and popsicle have only been motivated by what was our perceived best for you. We are enormously proud of you and at what you have done and will do.

We wanted to raise a thinking, caring, responsible adult. By the grace of God and through our mutual love, you are well on your way.

Life isn't always fair and you'll never get out of it alive, but it is rewarding to experi-ence all that is out there in the mad, mad world.

The old saying goes, "Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger." You have it in you to meet all that life throws at you. Know that mom and dad always have your back.



Copyright 2010 The Chester Progressive, Chester, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2011 The Chester Progressive Chester, California. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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