I needed to be in a better place before posting this, so please don't take my silence as indifference. After losing my Uncle two days before Christmas, my Aunt the day after, and Ed only a couple of weeks after that has hit me hard. I honestly haven't been ready to say goodbye.

Having an autistic son woke me from a nightmare. I had spent years not understanding why life was so challenging for me. I wasn’t like others and knew that at an early age. I spoke like an adult by preschool. I was so fascinated by the medical field that I had read a full textbook and could render first aid by 8 years old. I won a statewide writing contest in 6th grade. Also in middle school, I was one of the youngest certified in CPR by the State of Maryland at the time. And my life continued like this.