Gifts come to us in many shapes and sizes and sometimes in ways that we least expect. Although Joel has many challenges, he also has many gifts. We discovered Joel's prowess with the alphabet when he was taken to an eye doctor at the age of 3. The doctor placed the simplest chart he could find and instructed Joel to simply point which direction the E was going. The doctor pointed to the backwards E and Joel said "3"! The doctor looked at Joel curiously and pointed to the E facing down. Joel promptly said "M"! The doctor then quickly point to the E facing up and Joel said "W" and the doctor responded with "why don't we use the adult chart with regular letters?" From that point on the test went much better.
In spite of being autistic or maybe because of it, Joel has developed his lettering and spelling skills to high achievement level. Give him time and a computer and he can correctly spell any word pronounced correctly. When allowed to have an aid to keep him on task and allowed to use a computer, Joel has either won or come in second place on most spelling contests.
In first grade, Joel was able to write his name from right to left and left to right at the same time with both hands. He is able to see the entire alphabet in his mind so that he instantly knows how many letters a word has or a sentence. He quickly orders words and letters based on his unique image of the alphabet and how words are put together. Ordering numbers and letters is not simply a gift but is almost a perfection for him. He never makes a mistake in shelving books or alphabetizing anything so that he is an invaluable asset to any library.
He can say the alphabet in any order and instantly knows when something is spelled wrongly on a paper. This has caused problems occasionally because he does not hesitate to correct people when they misspell a word. He does not correct people out of arrogance but rather simply to "make it right." Thankfully, he has many times helped me out before sending a letter or a paper.
In addition to Joel's unusual spelling abilities, he also rarely forgets a name or details about a person. He memorizes facts that have little meaning to us but for whatever reason, have great meaning to him. He will often ask a stranger if he or she is married, children's names, relatives names, and sometimes even their weight.
Although his short term memory is severely challenged, his long-term memory is exceptional. He will remember people and events from many years before and often uses that knowledge to help him in a current situations.
We often rely on Joel's gifts and find ourselves baffled by him but also proud of him. We believe that there is a place in the world for Joel and the world is better of because of him.
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Joel was just a wee little tyke - Jacob was taking swimming lessons and Jordan was in a stroller. Joel noticed many numbers and letters on a billboard at the swimming pool. Although he has always been fascinated by water, the numbers and letters mesmerized him and he could name them all. He had eyes for nothing except the numbers and letters on that billboard, almost as if his neurons were working overtime trying to sort out the configuration of the alphabet and number system on the billboard. If only students in school could be so focused.
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