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joybridgekids · 2 years

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Alphabet Soup: Autism and ABA Terminology Explained

The moment your child receives a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), it can feel like the world has come crashing down on you. And though ASD is pretty common in the US, as 1 in 44 children receive the diagnosis, according to a 2021 Centers for Disease Control report, it still comes as disbelief that your child has it, right?

It’s definitely a tough pill to swallow for many parents. What’s even harder is getting a full understanding of treatment, what the treatments do, and the terminology used. This is a normal frustration for almost every parent of a child with autism. Whether your child just received an ASD diagnosis or you’re looking to get your child started with ABA Therapy (applied behavior analysis), the terminology used can sound like a foreign language to you.

As you embark on a new journey as a family, the best way to have a better understanding of your child’s diagnosis and treatment plan is to get a little more familiar with autism and the terms you’ll likely hear often throughout treatment. But before we get into terminology, let’s start with the basics first.

What is Autism? What is ABA Therapy?

Autism is a developmental disorder that largely affects an individual’s behavior and communication. The disorder is categorized as a developmental disorder because the symptoms of autism usually appear during a child’s most developmental years, which are years one and two.

ABA therapy is a form of evidence-based therapy specifically designed to help individuals with autism improve language and communication skills, decrease problematic behaviors, and improve attention, memory, social skills, and academics.

For a child with an ASD diagnosis, treatment from an ABA Therapy Center is imperative, and the sooner therapy starts after the initial diagnosis, the sooner your child can start implementing their learned skills and start applying them in real-world applications.

Getting to Know ABA and Autism Terminology

Below, you’ll find a list of the top 10 terms used in ABA therapy and a brief description of what each term means.

1. Antecedent

The events, actions, or circumstances that happen before a behavior. The ability to recognize and observe this is what will help you better understand your child’s behaviors.

2. Behavior

A behavior is an action that can be observed and measured; It’s what happens after an antecedent.

3. Consequence

A consequence is anything that happens directly after a behavior, and it can be good or bad.

4. Mand

Mand is a request to fulfill a want or need. Alternatively, it’s also a request to put an end to something undesirable.

5. Pairing

The act of building rapport with a child by ‘pairing’ a child’s learning environment and parent with a child’s favorite items or activities to help the therapist become a ‘giver of good things.’

6. Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement is a type of intervention that will increase a targeted behavior. For example, a child is given praise for finishing their homework.

7. Functional Behavior Assessment

A process used to identify problem behaviors in a child and develop interventions to improve or potentially eliminate those problematic behaviors. The process goes in the order of gathering information, direct observations, and creating an action plan.

8. Functional Communication

A form of treatment after an effective and thorough assessment that involves providing a child with a different way to communicate that doesn’t involve the negative behaviors associated with the frustration of their inability to communicate.

9. Tact

Tact is an expressive label for verbal behavior where the speaker tastes, sights, smells, and hears something and then comments or describes it.

10. Behavior Intervention Plan

The behavior intervention plan is a treatment plan that takes the results from the Functional Behavior Assessment to devise a plan of action for the child to improve behaviors in certain areas.

These are just a few terms you’ll likely hear; there are, of course, many more terms used but the 10 listed above are the basics to get you started in understanding the lifelong journey of autism. Understand that if at any point your therapists talk about something you don’t understand, don’t be afraid to stop them and ask them to explain something.

The More You Know

The more you know about autism and ABA therapy, especially the terms most commonly used in your child’s treatment, the better understanding you’ll have of what exactly is going on, how your child is progressing, and whether adjustments need to be made to their current treatment. Remember, this is just as much of a new life journey for you, the parent, as it is for your child, and educating yourself more on your child’s ASD diagnosis will make the journey a lot less bumpy.

#aba therapy #autism #functional communication #aba therapy center #Mt. Juliet #JoyBridge Kids

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coultercleaningservices · 11 months

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Coulter Cleaning Services | Commercial Cleaning Service | Janitorial Services in Mt. Juliet TN

We are your dependable and trustworthy go-to for top-tier Commercial Cleaning Service in Mt. Juliet TN, tailored to meet the unique needs of businesses. With a focus on delivering impeccable cleanliness and hygiene, our team of skilled professionals uses advanced techniques and eco-friendly products to ensure a pristine environment. With us, you can enhance productivity, create a positive impression, and maintain a healthy workplace. Moreover, acquiring our exceptional Janitorial Services in Mt. Juliet TN, can keep your corporate facility in pristine condition. From stained floors to dusty shelves, we clean everything, leaving no corner unattended. So, if you need our expert assistance, call us today.

#Commercial Cleaning Service in Mt. Juliet TN #Janitorial Services in Mt. Juliet TN #Post Construction Cleaning Services near me #Floor Cleaning Services near me #Office Cleaning Companies near me

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mountjulietfoundationrepair · 1 year

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Website: https://mountjulietfoundationrepair.com

Address: 3193 S Mt. Juliet Rd #7, Mt. Juliet, TN 37122

Phone: +1 615-709-6112

Are you a homeowner or commercial business owner in Mount Juliet, Tennessee and are in need of foundation repair services? Mount Juliet Foundation Repair is the local leader in all things foundation repair. Call us to discuss your fee estimate. We provide top tier service at pricing that won't break the bank. We also have financing available. Whether you are dealing with a cracked foundation, a sagging crawlspace, foundation sinking, or uneven floors we can handle it all. Our contractors are skilled, efficient, and professional and are ready to work for you. We specialize in Basement Wall Repair, Elevated Pilings or Stilts Foundation Repair, Basement Waterproofing, Cracked Wall / Structural Repair, House Raising / Lifting, House Leveling, Polyurethane Foam Injection and more.Give us a call and let us handle the rest.

#Mount Juliet Foundation Repair #Foundation Crack Repair #Foundation repair #house leveling #Foundation Repair Mt. Juliet

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cowplant-pizza · 1 year

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❤️🌸😍🌷Sᓰᘻ ᕲᑘᘻᕵ🌷😍🌸❤️

important: please feel free to use these sims in your gameplay as the main character or side sims. however, do NOT change their sexual orientation, skintones or pronouns. i would prefer you not to change anything else about them but please at least keep their base identities the same. also, tag me if you use them, i would love to see!

note 1: career is only for rp reasons. feel free to use mods to make these real

note 2: all sims come with 1 outift

first sim: emelia stanley traits: dance machine, athletic, family oriented aspiration: soulmate pronouns: she/her sexual orientation: straight career: professional samba dancer

second sim: emilie richmond traits: athletic, foodie, over achiever aspiration: extreme sports enthusiast pronouns: she/her sexual orientation: lesbian career: nutritionist and fitness blogger

third sim: juliet reed traits: creative, bookworm, cat lover aspiration: bestselling author pronouns: she/her sexual orientation: bisexual career: poetry writer

fourth sim: anaya huggins traits: self assured, adventurous, perfectionist aspiration: mt. komorebi sightseer pronouns: they/them sexual orientation: lesbian career: travel vlogger

download: simfileshare (no ads) ~ emelia ~ emilie ~ juliet ~ anaya ~ gallery id: boeybum

CC is included ~ thank you to all creators! the files were too big to upload to patreon, sorry!

#cowplant-pizza sim dump #sims 4 #the sims #ts4 #simblr #sim dump #my sim dump #sim dls #sim download

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irishcoyote · 11 days

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Inflamed Sense of Rejection: Chapter One

~~~~~~~~~~~ Author's Note: This is that Angel Face backstory I was talking about. His name is Caleb Handover because I'm not going to call him Angel Face the whole time. There will be no "spice" because I type this on a school computer and honestly I want to expand my writing abilities. ~~~~~~~~~~~

This is a horrible way to start a journal, probably the most over-done and unintriguing sentence used to start a story, but my name is Caleb Handover. I’m 16 years old, and I live in Wilmington, Delaware. I go to Mt. Pleasant High School, class of 2001. That makes me a Junior.

It’s boring. Every single day is the same. The ducks pass over the sky when I’m walking to school, and it looked cool when I was nine, but nowadays it just feels like I’m watching someone drive to work.

Delaware duck schedule: 6 AM, wake up to the same alarm as everyone in the neighborhood. 7 AM, fly to the pond for breakfast and a bath. Pass by that blond kid again.

My hair was born white. People on the street asked my mom while she was pushing the stroller, why do you bleach your baby’s hair?

She never did.

First period is Advanced Placement Calculus. I’m thinking about ducks. Derivatives, ducks, hyperbolas, ducks, factorials, ducks, integrals…

My mom called my hair duck-fuzz.

I like math, but I only say that because high schoolers have to like something. If you say you don’t like any subjects in school, you sound like a wannabe-dropout loser. I’m 16 years old and taking AP Calculus. I don’t think I’m a wannabe anything, but I don’t think I’m genuine, either. I’ve already done the warmup question on the board. Find 34! It’s just a factorial. Does anyone see me?

“Caleb Handover?”

Only during attendance.

I raise my hand until my elbow is about six inches off of my table, parallel to the smooth, fake-wood surface. Not high enough to seem like a geek, but still giving effort.

Invisibility is a science.

“Here.”

There’s a pause. My hand stays in the air.

“Caleb Handover?” my teacher tilts his chin up and surveys the room, his pencil hovering over my name, ready to write truant.

“I said I’m here,” I said louder as I raised my hand higher. My pen balances between my peace-sign fingers. My teacher flicks his eyes to me, and his eyebrows soften. He adjusts his glasses. The sad taste of desperation lingered in my mouth after essentially begging to be accounted for.

“Oh, hello Caleb. Sorry I didn’t see you.” My teacher laughs dryly and clears his throat. “Serena Hofstadter?”

She has mono.

“Gordon Jacobs?”

That’s how Serena got mono.

For a moment I picture Serena and Gordon as Romeo and Juliet during the final act. Gordon drinks from a tall, crystal vial of mononucleosis extract and collapses. Serena, covered head-to-toe in orange spray tan and blonde highlights underneath her Shakespearean garb, discovers him on the floor and gives a tearful soliloquy before kissing him feverishly in an attempt to drink the mono from his lips. In the end, they’re both bedridden, and everyone knows.

In fair Delaware we lay our scene.

I don’t know why, but I’m angry at them. Serena and Gordon. My knuckles turn white as I grip my pen harder, gritting my teeth and thinking about my peers who go to parties to drink and kiss and do drugs. I didn’t even think parties were a real thing until I started listening to rich kids’ conversations.

“I got home so late last night…” quote from the boy wearing the same clothes as yesterday.

“I’m, like, so hungover.” quote from the girl wearing sunglasses indoors at 8:30 AM.

“Her house was so tacky.” quote from the girl whose locker is head-to-toe in sequins and leopard print, who uses perfume to cover the smell of anxiety pheromones.

I’m not jealous, and I’d rather have lifelong diarrhea than be in the same boat as these kids, but it would be nice to have a life.

It would be nice to be a part of something bigger than myself.

~~~~~~~~~~~ Author's Note: Please let me know what you think, and if I should keep writing this. It would be appreciated :)

#fight club #fight club 1999 #angel face #angel face fight club #tyler durden #marla singer #the narrator #fight club fanfic #ricky fight club #narrator fight club #inflamed sense of rejection

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autumnhobbit · 24 days

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devastated i wasn’t at the cracker barrel yard sale

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officialyourdailyinspiration · 3 months

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Six pro-life supporters have been found guilty in federal court for a peaceful protest at an abortion clinic in Nashville, TN. They each face a maximum of 11 years in prison and fines of up to $260,000.

The charges stem from the pro-life activists’ blockade of Carafem Health Center Clinic in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. On March 5, 2021, the activists blocked entrance to the clinic and began to pray and sing Christian hymns...

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andsjuliet · 9 months

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LORNA COURTNEY as JULIET CAPULET in & JULIET

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ballet-symphonie · 9 months

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Ale, do you know if something is happening at the Mariinsky? Like, the stage lights and set design are so bad. The lights aren't synchronized with the dancers and mostly have no effect to it. And the stage is soo poorly decorated. It looks empty and old. Even if you look in the old days, it was so much better. The corps of the ballet are also so unsychronized and look like they are being dragged. In Bayadere, Swan Lake it looks awful. Lastly, the orchestra is making so many mistakes like??? In Shakirova's debut, the orchestra went out of tune so many times... This is Russia's second biggest theater. The BT, ROH and even smaller theaters around the world have no problem with it. It looks incredible. Meanwhile, the MT's Juliet costume looks like a bed sheet that has been ripped... sorry of the rant lol

Did something happen? No, not anything new. The Mariinsky's productions have been in disarray for a decade at least.

A lot of their older productions are desperately in need of repair or redesign, that hideous Romeo and Juliet is near the top of my list. I know they want to 'preserve' the original theatre as untouched as possible but, I think it's come to a point that the main stage of Mariinsky (not Mariinsky II) needs its lighting and sound equipment updated.

The corps are always a bit drained before the end of the season and scheduling Bayadere and Swan Lake, two of the most intensive corps ballets, right at the finish line is practically torture and perhaps not the smartest schedule for the company. I expect the corps will be better after the restful lay off.

Regarding the orchestra....talk to Gergiev, that's his job.

#ballet #ballerina #ballet ask #mariinsky theatre

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9puppiesdrowninginapool · 5 months

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*kisses you w tongue @brandybradyrandyandyndy * Pick a song for each letter of your URL, and then tag that many people!

9 - 99 Luftballons - Nena

P - People, I've been sad - Christine and the queens

U - US-Studie - Von Wegen Lisbeth

P - Pinball Wizard - Elton John

P - Purge the poison - Marina (and the diamonds)

I - I crave you - Polarcode + Lauren Ruth Ward

E - Elle me dit - MIKA

S - She's my collar - The Gorillaz

D - Dirty Love - Mt. Joy

R - Romeo and Juliet - Dire Straits

O - Olivia - Natalia Lacunza

W - We are golden - MIKA

N - National Anthem - Lana Del Rey

I - I'm a man - Jobriath

N - Night Moves - Bob Seger

G - Genesis - Grimes

I - I've seen that movie too - Elton John

N - Night of the Swallow - Kate Bush

A - Alanis' Interlude - Halsey

P - Pienso en tu mirá - Rosalía

O - One Thing - One Direction

O - Overrated - MIKA

L - Love and happiness - Al Green

And I tag: @25explodingdinosaursinspace @gosaldu @twogoliathbeetles @only-one-road @timeladyzelie @deez-no-relation @iankabra @thirteens-earring @poebeau @ghostlyacquaintance @no-sir-i-can-not-boogie @roycogaystar @sigynpenniman @cinnamon-toast-cronch @morph-euse @theend and anyone who feels like it :)

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ebookporn · 1 year

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House approves bill targeting publishers for sending schools sexually explicit books

A Tennessee bill that would open book publishers and distributors to criminal prosecution for sending obscene materials to public schools is headed to Gov. Bill Lee.

by Vivian Jones

The Tennessee House of Representatives approved Senate Bill 1059 in a 71-22 vote. It already passed the Senate last week, and now heads to Lee’s desk.

Sponsored by Rep. Susan Lynn, R-Mt. Juliet, and Sen. Joey Hensley, R-Hohenwald, the bill would empower local district attorneys and the Tennessee Attorney General to criminally charge and prosecute book publishers who knowingly distribute materials that violate state obscenity law to public schools and school districts.

Book publishers and distributors could face felony charges and fines of up to $100,000 per violation, if the bill is signed into law.

“This is only for books being sent to the school,” Lynn told The Tennessean. “Certainly, if there are any sexually explicit books in teacher’s classrooms or in school libraries, they need to come out. You can’t give sexually explicit books to minors.”

The Tennessee Association of School Librarians opposed the bill. TASL’s Legislative Committee noted that the bill could impact book publishers and distributors’ willingness to work with school districts in Tennessee, adding that it “creates unnecessary bureaucracy, limits students’ access to books, and leaves us with lots of questions.”

#soft censorship #banned books #teachers #educators #librarians #school libraries #public libraries #free speech #first ammendment #lgbtq rights #tennessee #Tennessee House of Representatives

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odiggity · 2 years

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Evening in the Backyard

Cumberland River - Mt. Juliet, TN

#photographers on tumblr #original photographers #seascape #seascape photography #landscape #landscape photography #sunset #long exposure #longexposurephotography #peaceful #river #riverphotography #tennessee #nashville

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stargazer-sims · 7 months

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Journal Entry #59

Journal Entry #58 // STORY INDEX

Victor

We’ve been having an amazing summer.

Yeah, I know we’ve been neglecting our journal again, but in a way I feel like maybe we’re outgrowing it. We’ve been chronicling our life this way for over a year, and so much has changed for us in that time. So much has changed about us as well. We’re not the same people we were a year ago, and that’s a good thing.

I started this journal for fun because I wanted to do some travelling that wasn’t connected to a snowboarding competition, and I thought it'd be cool to document my adventures. I did get to go to Sulani, but in hindsight, now I see how unrealistic it was to think I’d be jetting frivolously all around the globe.

But, starting the journal wasn’t a wasted effort by any means. Looking back on it, it’s a reminder of how far Yuri and I have come, what we’ve learned and how we’ve grown as individuals and as a couple. I love us, and I'm proud of the progress we’ve made together.

It’s been interesting to share a part of our story with everyone, but I feel like we’re moving into a different stage of our life now. I don't know if we'll keep recording our journey like this in the future. We'll see.

Anyway, we're still doing it for now, so let me pick up where I left off back in June.

After Mom and Julian's wedding, Yuri and I had a few days together before he and his family returned to Japan. I had a great time showing them around, and I think Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto fell in love with Willow Creek a little bit, because they said they wanted to come back for a longer visit in the near future. Yuki's favourite thing was actually the amusement park in nearby Newcrest, and her parents really seemed to enjoy the scenic walking trails and the farmers market.

Before they left, Mr. Okamoto asked me if I'd like to stay with them when I returned to Mt. Komorebi instead of moving back into Uncle Kaz's house for what might end up being only a couple of months. My knee-jerk reaction was to say no, but I'm glad I managed to keep that to myself. The offer did make a lot of sense, after all. If Yuri and I both stayed with his parents, we wouldn't have to pay rent on top of our mortgage payment for the haunted house, and we could pack up the rest of our stuff so we'd be ready to leave whenever we reasonably could. I just didn't know how I'd feel, being in such close proximity to my in-laws for an extended period of time.

I told Mr. Okamoto I'd think about it and get back to him, and he seemed satisfied with that.

Grandpa Michael also hung around in Willow Creek for a while after the wedding. I said he could stay with me, but he declined, claiming the house would be too crowded with all Yuri's family members staying there too. I found that a little odd at first, until I discovered that he somehow managed to hook up with someone at the wedding and got invited to stay in her guest room for a few nights.

"She's a younger woman, and she’s hot," he told me confidentially. "Her name's Juliet. How about that?"

"Uh... how much younger are we talking?" I asked.

"She's sixty-six."

"Don't you think you're moving kinda fast? Like, sleeping over at her place after you literally just met her?"

"Listen," Grandpa Michael said. "At my age, you gotta move fast so you don't miss the good opportunities."

He's seventy-three. If he was in a contest for old people who move fast, he'd probably win a medal.

Still, he deserves to find happiness and have fun. It’s been seven years since my grandma passed away, and I’m pretty sure he’ll never stop loving her, but seven years is a long time to be alone if you’re used to being with somebody. If he feels like he's ready to get back into the dating scene, who am I to tell him not to?

When I met the aforementioned Juliet a couple days later, I totally understood the attraction. Although ‘hot’ wasn’t exactly the first word that sprang to mind, I could definitely see why Grandpa Michael would think so. She was elegant and confidently attractive in the way women are when they embrace aging with grace instead of engaging in a useless battle with it. I could easily imagine her being a knockout in her younger days. When she was my age, I bet she turned every head in every room she stepped into.

Beyond my initial impression of Juliet Picard, I was startled to realize I recognized her. She was the woman who'd been in charge of all the flowers for the wedding. Turns out she owns a florist shop called Hearts and Flowers, which happens to be down the street from Mom and Julian's clinic. Coincidentally, the flower shop also occupies the same building as the flat where Davian St-Jean, a friend of mine from high school, lives.

I used to say Willow Creek was the most boring place on Earth, that nothing ever happens there, but that's when I was viewing it through the eyes of a guy who thought events didn't have much meaning unless they were big and exciting and important to everyone. I was wrong about that. Sometimes the most seemingly insignificant thing carries the most weight.

A lot happens in Willow Creek. It's a town of connections, of opportunities small and large, the sort of place where a chance interaction could change the course of somebody's life in ways they might never have been able to imagine.

I mean, I was in Willow Creek when I met Yuri. Sitting alone in my sparsely -furnished unit at the Sage Estates apartment complex, scrolling through a forum for snowboarding enthusiasts, I had no idea I was going to see a photo of this impossibly cute Japanese boy doing a silly pose with his board. My impulsivity made me message him, and his curiosity made him message back. Prior to that day, if anyone had suggested I would meet my soulmate through a random encounter on the internet, I think I would've laughed out loud.

But now? Don't tell me stuff doesn't happen in Willow Creek. Dreams are born there, and nobody will ever convince me to change my mind about that again.

The day after Yuri and his family headed home, Grandpa Michael and I departed for Brindleton Bay. He returned his rented car, and then Juliet met us for breakfast and dropped us off at the bus station afterwards.

"I'll be back," he told her as we were about to board the bus, and I swear it was totally dramatic, like something out of a movie. He was dead serious, though, so I had to do my best not to laugh.

"I'll be looking forward to it," she said.

I reached into my bag and pulled out the keys to the house. "Here," I said, handing them to my grandpa. "Consider my place your place until Yuri and I come back. Feel free to use it any time."

He grinned at me, and for a split second I could've sworn I saw the face of a man half his age. "Thanks. I'm sure I'll enjoy that heated swimming pool, and your fabulous kitchen. I'll make myself at home."

"Go for it," I said. "Just don't use the red mug, and don't sleep in the basement bedroom."

Juliet raised an eyebrow. "What an odd thing to say."

"It's only odd if you don't know about the ghost," I told her.

"The ghost?"

"Victor's house is haunted," Grandpa Michael said cheerfully. "Cool, don't you think?"

"Really?" Juilet looked intrigued. "Well, I can't wait to see that."

"Victor, I presume I'm allowed to have houseguests?"

"Go for it," I said. "Far be it from me to cramp your style."

He winked at Juliet. "Heated swimming pool."

"Oh, lord..." she responded, but she was laughing. "I think I'll have to keep him, Victor. I wouldn't want to unleash him on anyone else."

"Consider me kept." Grandpa Michael put the keys into his own bag, and then gave me a thumbs up. "Just let me know when you're coming back. I'll make sure I'm there, so you can get in."

"Don't worry," I said. "Mom has the other set of keys. We'll be able to get in. I'll let her know you'll be coming and going, though. We don't want her to think somebody's trying to break into the place."

"Imagine explaining that to the police," he said, and the look on his face implied he'd very much enjoy stirring up a little trouble like that.

Mom says I'm just like Grandpa Michael. She's probably not wrong. Aside from sharing an almost obsessive passion for snow sports and being international competitors — he was a world champion slalom skiier back in the day — we have the same love for food, the same enjoyment of being with other people, the same sense of humour and, I think it's safe to say, the same impulse control issues.

I love him. I mean, I love my other grandparents too, but I think I have a deeper bond with Grandpa Michael than with the others. We get each other on a fundamental level.

We had a blast during the week I spent in Brindleton Bay with him. We passed a lot of our time at the local fitness center, and every morning we had tea and breakfast with his friends at a café in town. His friends are awesome, for the record. After the first day, I kind of forgot I was hanging out with guys in their seventies. One afternoon, we all played golf together, and on another day we went deep-sea fishing with one of the friends who owns a boat.

When we weren't socializing, we managed to get loads of yard work done, and we did plenty of cooking. Oh man... the cooking. It was so nice not to have to worry about ingredients and portion sizes and making sure everything had the right balance of protein and carbs. We cooked whatever we felt like having, and trust me, we had a lot of it. I'm pretty sure I've never eaten so much in a week in my entire life. With my belly full, I slept like a dead man every night, and it was absolutely satisfying.

On the evening before my flight back to Japan, Grandpa Michael and I were sitting on his back doorstep, drinking some fruit juice and staring out at the ocean. If I thought sunsets over the lake in Granite Falls were beautiful, let me tell you they've got nothing on sunsets over the ocean. The last time I'd seen anything like that, I'd been in Sulani, but somehow this was better. It wasn't that the sunset itself was any more gorgeous, but because I was seeing it with someone I care about and who I know cares about me.

"It's been a long time since I got to sit here and enjoy this with another person," my grandfather said, as if he were reading my thoughts.

"I'm glad I get to watch it with you."

"Me too," he said. "I hope you'll come back here more often, once you're all settled into your new home. Bring your husband too. He seems like a sweet little fellow."

I laughed at that, thinking about how Yuri would respond to being referred to as 'a sweet little fellow'. He'd probably love it, and I could picture him blushing.

"I will," I promised. "But I guess you'll be coming to Willow Creek more often now too, won’t you? So we'll have extra chances to see each other."

"Hmm..." Grandpa Michael leaned back in his chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him. "I never thought I'd find someone I wanted to be with after your grandmother. I didn't think I'd ever want to love anyone that way again, honestly, but I might have changed my mind."

"You think love at first sight is a thing?"

"No," he said. "You never want to say 'love' too quickly, but it's okay to think about it, and I've got a good feeling."

I smiled. "I'm really glad you met Juliet."

"So am I. She made me remember that being alive and living life aren't the same thing," he said. "You know, it's easy to give up on living when you feel like you've lost your reason to live. But, I think we forget that we've got more than one reason. There's more to live for than that one person or thing we lost."

I thought about Yuri. He'd been at his lowest point this past winter, and for a while I'd really been afraid that he'd given up on wanting to be alive, not just on living. Nothing I said or did seemed to matter, and it was scaring me more than anything else ever had. But then, just when I was wondering what would become of him, of us and the future we’d planned, his reminder to live came from the most unlikely source; his father.

If somebody asked me to guess who'd save Yuri in the end, I never would’ve predicted it’d be his dad. Their relationship was practically non-existent up until this year.

It’d taken some pretty horrible events to make them take the first tiny steps toward fixing their broken trust, but all the pain and suffering was worth it if Yuri and his dad learned how to communicate with each other. They’ve both found hope and renewed determination to make the most out of their time in the world, and I’m thankful.

Since March, their relationship has grown by leaps and bounds, and it's been truly amazing to observe. Yuri is happier than I've ever known him to be. He's looking forward, rather than being stuck in a bubble of self-pity and going nowhere. Even the smallest things seem to bring him joy now, and I can't even begin to describe how full my heart is over that.

I want this to last. I want him to be happy forever, and I don't even care if I'm not the catalyst. Seeing him happy makes me happy. The reason for it doesn't matter, as long as he's thriving.

Of course, I'm enough of a realist to get that it's not always going to be sunshine and strawberry milkshakes. Yuri's chronic illness will never go away, so it's inevitable that he'll have bad days or weeks. Plus, we're doubtless going to have to deal with difficult stuff that's completely unrelated to Yuri's health.

That having been said, I'm of the opinion that happiness is a state of being. Like, even if we're not constantly cheerful and we're navigating scary or unpleasant situations, we can still be happy. There's always something to be grateful for, always one more reason to keep on living, and that's what I want for Yuri. My wish for him is that he'll finally understand happiness is something he can choose for himself, and even if everything around him is dark and bitter, he can still find his own metaphorical sunshine and strawberry milkshakes on the inside.

When I shared that with Grandpa Michael, he told me he was proud of me and said I should be proud of myself too.

"You've grown up a lot since you've been away," he commented.

"Thanks. I've had a lot of people helping me."

"Other people can only get you so far. You have to want to do it."

"I don't know if I wanted to," I confessed. "Being an adult is hard. Part of me wishes I could just stay a kid forever, Know what I mean?"

"Believe it or not, I do," he said. "But you know what they say. You don't have to stop playing just because you're growing up."

With that in mind, I've made it my mission to get in as much playtime as possible this summer and to bring as many people along with me on my adventures as I can.

I made up my mind to stay with my in-laws when I got back to Mt. Komorebi, and I have no regrets. Yuri and I have been filling our days with all kinds of activities from long walks on the mountain trails, to visiting local museums and galleries, to picnic lunches by the lake near his parents' house. I returned in time for the Festival of Snow, and the whole family went to it together. We were out all day, and it was even more fun than last year.

A few weeks ago, Yuri and I took a weekend trip to Kyoto for shopping, sightseeing, and a classical music concert. Yuri convinced me to go back to the spa we went to on the day before we got married, and afterwards we bought dango from a street vendor and ate it in the little park where we had our wedding pictures taken.

We've been spending time with our friends as well, and it probably goes without saying that Sakura and I are training on the mountain as much as we’re reasonably able to. Last week, Yuri told me that he thought he was finally feeling strong enough to get back on his board, so I called Sakura and asked her if we could skip training for the day so I could take Yuri snowboarding. She sounded only too glad to oblige, and said she might come out to join us, if Yuri didn't mind. He said he didn't, so Sakura met us at the intermediate slope, and the three of us had one of the most wonderful mornings I've had in a long time.

Yuri was exhausted by the time we were done, but even more importantly, he was hungry. He practically begged me to take him to a local ramen house for his favourite meal of the moment, kake udon. That's a kind of mild noodle soup that can be served with different toppings like tofu, sliced fish or shrimp tempura. Yuri likes it with scallions and fish. He somehow talked me into buying him strawberry daifuku as well, and then he didn't even share them with me. Like... the nerve! When it became clear I wasn't going to get even a bite of one of his, I had to order my own. I pretended to protest, but I was secretly thrilled, if you really want to know.

Yuri's been doing so good with his eating that Dr. Kasongo thinks she might be able to remove his feeding tube by the end of the year. He officially finished the first phase of his nutrition rehabilitation therapy in mid-July, so that means no more food intelligence classes and no more weekly visits with the nutritionist and psychologist.

He's happy about not having to meet with the psychologist every single week, but he's nervous about not seeing the nutritionist as regularly. She's been like a safety net for him, I think. He had to be accountable to her, and now he's worried that he's not going to be able to do it without her encouraging, reminding, and occasionally scolding him about his food intake and eating choices. He's supposed to continue with his daily food diary, and at this point he's supposed to start planning his own weekly menu or at least contributing to the planning of a family menu. He has a short consultation with the nutritionist every two weeks, usually ten or fifteen minutes by video call, so he can go over his food diary and meal plans with her. It's nothing like his previous hour-long weekly in-person sessions, and he's stressed.

Everyone in the family is cheering him on, though. We all know he can do it.

His current goal is to go sixty consecutive days without a single tube feeding. That, and his general overall health, are the criteria for having the tube removed. He looked like he was about to panic when the doctor told him that, and on the way home from his appointment he cried while telling me he didn't think he was ready to go sixty days in a row.

"It's okay," I said. "If you're not ready yet, that's not a bad thing. Just do the best you can."

"But, I'll be delaying our move even more if I can't do this," he said.

"No, you won't. We've got the date for your first appointment with Dr. Kim now, don't forget. We can move any time between now and then, and if you still have your tube when we move, I'm sure Dr. Kim can take it out just as easily as Dr. Kasongo could."

As a matter of fact, he'd received the email from Dr. Kim, the gastroenterologist at Willow Creek Regional Hospital, just the day before we last saw Dr. Kasongo. Yuri's initial appointment with Dr. Kim is scheduled for the twenty-second of October. While I wanted to leave Japan before autumn, I had to acknowledge there really was no rush, and if we didn't get to Willow Creek until mid-October, that would still be fine.

When we got back to Yuri's parents' house, we told them all about how it'd gone with Dr. Kasongo. Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto agreed that it was okay if Yuri didn't think he was ready to commit to the sixty-day home stretch yet, but they also said they were confident in his ability.

Yuki, who had overheard part of the conversation, later offered the helpful suggestion of making a sticker chart. "So every day you go without formula, you get to put a sticker on it, and at the end, you get a big reward!"

I thought she meant the 'big reward' was having his tube taken out, but Yuki had something else in mind. She conspired with her mother to create the most fantastic sticker chart I've ever seen. They drew it on poster board, and blocked it with six rows of ten squares each. Every tenth square had 'reward' written on it, and the sixtieth square boldly proclaimed 'BIG REWARD!!!' in alternating yellow and pink letters, Yuri's favourite colours. They bought an assortment of stickers for him to use on it, including ones with pink ice cream, seashells, glittery rainbow stars, cute baby animals, and — to his obvious delight — sparkly musical instruments, including violins.

"Look at this, Yuri. We have a plan," his mother said, as she went about hanging the chart on the wall in the kitchen. "Whenever you're ready to start counting your sixty days, let me know, and I'll give you the stickers."

To my surprise, it was less than a week later when he told her he was ready to begin.

Today is the ninth of August. We're on day eight of the first ten days today, and the full sixty days will bring us up to the first of October. We’ll be sure to keep you informed about how it’s going, but so far, so good.

We're tentatively planning our move for the middle of September, and I'm cautiously optimistic. Everyone who's watching this, please wish us luck.

There are people who say luck isn't really a thing, and that we can only get ahead by persistence and hard work, but I think it's a combination of the two. Like, I think it's true that our own efforts and our determination to succeed is the real driving force, but who would ever say no to a serendipitous stroke of luck? Even the hardest worker needs a helping hand now and then, and I'm not too proud to accept a well-meant wish for good fortune and success.

#writing #victorsworldadventures #victor nelson #yuri okamoto #stargazersims

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