A teenager becomes a special friend to a little boy who has Down's syndrome. Roberto Sandusky is almost 11 years old.
My name is Megan Denise Miller, and I am 13 years old. I am going to be in the 8th grade in about a month and a half, and I have been busy volunteering my time working with handicapped children. I work twice a week at Morningside Academy, which is a school for kids with significant special needs.
One of the kids I work with on a regular basis is a little boy named Roberto. Roberto Miguel Sandusky is nearly 11 years old, and he is mentally disabled; he was born with something called Down's syndrome, which caused mental retardation and accompanying features, such as slanted eyes, a protruding tongue, stubby fingers, a proneness to gaining weight, and heart defects. He also has cerebral palsy, and he walks with forearm crutches and wears leg braces on his short, stocky legs.
Roberto is a good kid, but he DOES have his moments where he can definitely try one's patience. For example, he likes to run off, and we are always so scared that he is going to get hit by a car or something. He also likes to try to twirl around like a top, swinging his crutches all the while; and we are so scared that he is going to belt someone in the head with his crutches. Whenever he does this, we get angry and tell him, "NO!", or we grab his hands, which does NOT sit well with him AT all. He also loves to sit in one spot on occasion and rock in place, humming a tuneless tune, his eyes focused on nothing in particular.
He is severely mentally handicapped, functioning at the level of a two-to-three- year old, and we are always afraid that if we DO try to discipline him, he will only turn upset, and that his heart will act up. He has a weakened heart, and he has already endured several open heart surgeries (the last one, of which, nearly killed him; it took a long time for him to recover). So one has to be really careful when disciplining Roberto.
I first met Roberto Sandusky a year ago, and I was enamored with this cute, pudgy kid with thick, black hair that fell into his eyes, tan skin, and unpredictable nature. A lot of people thought that he was ugly, but I happened to think that he was very cute. I fancied him as looking somewhat like a short, stocky teddybear. He was rather shy at first, but as he got used to me, he accepted me, and soon we became friends.
Nowadays, whenever I see him at his school, he will come up to me on his crutches, and he will give me a big bear hug or a wet, drooly kiss. He will also give me stickers he has collected, or he will show me the latest things he has learned. He is quite smart, even with his mental and physical handicaps, and nothing pleases him more than showing off.
Enchanta (50,000 words) is an imaginative young adult fantasy novel for children eight to thirteen that adults could also enjoy. The story has lots of magic, adventure and surprises.
