Time to Say Goodbye

Good evening.

I started this blog about two years ago.  While my ultimate goal was to be a voice for other special needs parents, there is no question that it was a therapeutic exercise for me.  Writing here has been a way for me to process my feelings and make some form of sense out of them.  I always say that I hope that I reach at least ONE PERSON and make their lives better.  In actuality, I have reached my own self and have become stronger.

In this two year period the blog has reached 54,000 people.  I would have been excited to think I reached 540 people!  The truth is, I have no way of telling if any of those 54,000 people found some sort of solace in what I wrote.  I want to believe that there were caregivers out there nodding their head and feeling like my words spoke for them.

If anyone is reading this right now and thinking that anything I said made their path in the least bit easier, I want to thank you.  I'm incredibly humbled by every person that sent a note of support throughout this journey.  The most frequent comment that I have heard is that my posts made them cry.  I've never found this easy to reply to.  I'm sorry?  Thank you??  I try to think about it as I've raised someone's sensibility toward people that are affected by the spectrum.

I feel as though the blog has been successful in that it has given Tyler a voice which reaches people around the world.  I have had views from all over the globe.  There are folks from Russia, France, Hong Kong, China, Germany, Austria, Brazil, and all points in between that have followed the blog.  To think that my boy has reached people all over the globe is incredible.  I believe that he has changed peoples lives.

Unfortunately, I feel as though I have reached a creative conclusion of the blog.  For the past few months I have struggled to keep the message going.  To continue to try and carry on would be wrong if that is where I am at.  I am currently writing for a national website, a magazine, and working on a book.  My wish is that these projects are part of an even larger calling to reach an even larger audience.

I want to thank Tyler for being the inspiration behind every single letter that I type.  He is the light of my life and I could not be more proud of being his Dad.  I also want to thank the amazing people that have been in our lives for so many years.  Tyler's Great-Grandparents, Grandparents, The Yinger Family, Alison, Miss Sue, the staff of TLC, Red Lion Zion Church, Shadowfax, the Sherman Oaks Hood, and so many others that deserve more credit than I could ever give them.  Tyler's Great-Grandfather John who we lost earlier this year: you were an incredible force in all of our lives and we love and miss you more than you could ever know.

My final word is this: be a changing force in someone's life.  No matter what you face in your life, do it with grace.  Turn your experiences into the beacon for someone else to follow.  Love one another.  Be an amazing force for good.

Be well and God bless.    Tom