Huckleberry Ray Malloy, aged 13, writes of the downfalls of having a brother with special needs.
Hanson Michael, his little brother, is mentally disabled and has some residual problems involving his balance after nearly drowning last winter when he fell through the ice. They were featured in the story, "Trapped Beneath The Ice: A Small Child's Fight For Life."
I guess my little brother really isn't THAT bad, but he is still a big little pain in my butt.
It doesn't help that he is mentally slow, and now has to wear braces on his legs because he has problems with walking, ever since he nearly drownded last winter when he fell into a frozen pond in our yard after the ice broke.
Ever since, Hanson has seen me as something of a hero; he won't leave me alone, and he feels that he has to be right by my side EVERY MINUTE. No matter what I do, there he is, tagging behind me like a pesky fly; and I sometimes get so mad at him I want to BELT him a good one!
He has always had problems learning, ever since he was born, and he goes to a special school for retarded kids. There, they teach him how to do things like dressing or undressing, how to eat with a fork, knife, and spoon, and how to set a table; stuff I could do by the time I was five; but he is still learning, and he often makes mistakes. He looks to me for help, and sometimes he asks me at the wrong time, like if my friends are over, or if we are in the middle of playing a game or something.
I don't know why mom gets so gorked out whenever I get mad at Hanson; I mean, a guy has to have his privacy from time to time, and I don't need a ragtag little retardo kid hanging around me all the time! It is bad enough I get teased anyway about Hanson; I don't want the guys to think I am a built-in babysitter or something!
I wish we had a sister that could watch over Hanson, but noooo...mom only had to have one more kid after me, and the kid turned out to be retarded; so guess who gets stuck watching him...That's right...ME!
I am always having to wipe his nose, or pick up his messes; or I have to make sure he does his therapy or take his medicine, so he doesn't have one of his seizures again and scare the holy hairballs outta' me. I hate it when he has one of his seizures because it looks like he is dying, and I don't like the sounds he makes when he is jerking all over.
I also have to make sure he gets up in time to go to school, so he doesn't miss the bus again; he is always missing his bus, and then mom gets mad because she has to drive him to his school herself, and then she is late for work; and she says if her boss chews her out one more time for being late, then she is going to lose her job.
I know it isn't Hanson's fault that he is retarded, but having a retarded brother sure complicates things because you never know what may happen (such as the time he nearly drownded last winter, or the time he nearly set his bed on fire after he got a hold of some matches from the kitchen), and you never know how he will be from one minute to the next. One minute, Hanson is all sweet and adorable and loving, and the next, he is psycho kid, yelling and screaming like he is being killed, and yanking off his clothes until he is standing there, in his birthday suit, for all the world to see. The last time he did that we were at McDonald's, and the sight of Ronald McDonald drove him bananas. That was when we found out that he is terrified of clowns; and ever since then, we don't go to McDonald's anymore.
I still hunger for a Big Mac, but we haven't been in McDonald's ever since Hanson went ballistic; and now, whenever I see a commercial for the Golden Arches or go by a McDonald's, I am immediately reminded of Hanson's outburst, and then I feel ashamed and embarrassed that he is my brother. It is at times like this when I wish he were normal, and I wish he didn't have to be born mentally retarded.
I don't know how you do it Karen, how you get into the brain and personality of these children you have created. It is fantastic, and it must be very difficult for a child who finds him or herself in a situation like this. Too much responsibility at such a young age. Jackie <> <
you've captured the trials and tribulations of a child with a brother or sister with special needs perfectly in this write--the frustration and anger they must feel
WOW--well done!
(((HUGS))) and love,
karla. :)
Reviewed by Robert Blackwell
8/27/2003
I'm sure that my oldest child thinks so, too, at times, about his brother, who has autism. Nice write!
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Spoken Word
This CD will touch the deepest inner part of your humanness and spirit, you will never be the same after listening to the depths of struggle, the reality of life, the touching voice of truth. It will shock you, move you to tears. It w
