Over the years the Foundation has had the privilege of getting to know extended family members of the children we work with.  Often, we could not have the kind of contact necessary to assist families if grandparents, aunts and uncles didn’t get involved.  Meet one such family that we have enjoyed getting to know over the years. Here are some thoughts that Grandma Maria has when it comes to the Foundation: “I am primarily a Spanish speaking person and have had a hard time keeping up with school information and homework that my two grandsons bring home.  Having a tutor to help the boys with their homework has been a big relief.  One of the ways the Foundation has helped our family is by assisting us with communication with my adult daughter who has disabilities.  This has made it possible for her to have a relationship with her sons.”

Lately, I have been working with Brandon on the power of persistence through dialogue as well as daily demonstrations. My young 5 1/2 son has been playing chess with Daniel for over a year already. Often times, Brandon loses his patience because Daniel wins the game or makes a move that Brandon didn’t see coming.

Then, last week, Brandon won the game! I am always looking for ways to educate Brandon through life’s examples. I found this to be the perfect time to teach persistence. I asked Brandon how it felt to win the game. He said, “good!” I told him to keep that feeling because it is the result of patience & persistence.

Another educational example of persistence & perseverance occurred a couple days later when I decided I wanted to get Brandon ready and take him to school myself. I warned Brandon beforehand that we were going to have to get dressed, brush teeth & hair, eat breakfast, pack lunch & be ready for our ride, Access Services, and be ready by 7:10am. He did not mind because Brandon loves working, with mommy, as a team.

When I was picking out my clothes, I had a hard getting my shirt off the hanger. I kept pulling at the shirt, but it would not slide off the hanger. Brandon said, “Mommy, do you need help?” Knowing that he would not be able to reach it, I said, “No thank you sweetie, I can do it. Persistence is the key.” I had pulled myself up on the bar, in my closet,  into a standing position. Brandon said, “Be careful mommy, please don’t fall.” I assured him that I was fine. After 3 or 4 attempts of my pulling, the shirt fell off the hanger. At this point, I looked at Brandon and said, “That is the result of persistence.”

A few minutes later I noticed that Brandon’s pants was too loose, so I told him to go to his closet to get his belt. History was repeating itself, Brandon was struggling, he was trying to get his belt off the nail in his closet. I asked him if I could help him. He said, “No mom, persistence!” I smiled, that’s my boy. He struggled for a minute and each time he pulled on the belt, he counted 1…2…3, “Got it mommy!” He ran over to me, showed me the belt and I gave him a big hug. As if this wasn’t enough of a lesson for one day, then we learned teamwork.

At this point, it was time to move into the kitchen to make breakfast & lunch. I get the food out of the refrigerator, Brandon puts the food on the plates & pops the food in the microwave to keep the food from flying off plates and landing on the floor. It’s a good system!

When we were putting his lunch together I realized the salami was in a new/unopened package. For any other mother, just open the package & put the salami in her child’s lunch. As you have probably figured out, I am not any other mother. I told Brandon “if mommy cannot get the package open, you will have to eat a bagel and cream cheese. Ok bud?” He was disappointed, but he understood. So, Brandon went to brush his teeth and his hair, when he got back he saw that I got the salami open.

Most kids wouldn’t even notice, but as Brandon came back in the kitchen, he immediately said, “Mom, how did you get the salami open?” I looked at him, smiled and said, “Persistence!” With persistence and beautiful teamwork, together Brandon & I got everything done just as our transportation arrived. After getting the car seat, the bag that hangs on the back of my wheelchair to carry the car seat and we got  in the Paratransit van, I looked at Brandon, gave him a high five and said, “We did it Buddy!” With persistence & patience, anything is achievable!

To view this blog entry and other blogs by Dina go to:

http://lifewithdinagarcia.com/persistence-and-patience/

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Access Services is responsible for the administration of Access, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandated paratransit transportation program for Los Angeles County and is committed to improving the mobility on public transit of persons with disabilities.