A Swinging Good Time

My son hates swings. Or at least, he did until recently.

As I wrote in my recent Patch column, Kai has difficulty with motor coordination. He has trouble catching a ball, and never wanted to ride a tricycle, let alone a bicycle.

And he never goes on swings.

A couple of weeks ago, Kai went to a playground with another boy. While Kai much prefers going on slides, this other boy, who also has autism, loves swings and soars to amazing heights on them. That is one small example of how kids with autism can be very different.

For some reason, on this occasion, Kai surprised Mom by telling her that he wanted to go on a swing, too. So, my wife helped him on and gave him gentle pushes. Before, whenever we tried the swings, Kai stayed on for only a short time before jumping off. But this time he stayed on for a long time.

I could hardly believe it when they got home and my wife told me that Kai asked to go on a swing.

But, the other day, Kai and I made our way over to the local playground. Again, he went on a swing. As you can see by the picture, he actually seems to be enjoying it. I’ve got to work with him on moving his legs and body so that he can propel himself better, but this is a start.

Oh, what’s that? Yes, he is wearing a bicycle helmet. But, that is a story for another day.