Adding a little variety

This morning, one of our adult clients, Christy, stopped in to hand me a note she had written. In large bold letters, she wrote, "NEXT YEAR! IN OCTOBER MARK ON YOUR CALENDAR! LET'S TAKE ANY ONE STUDENT AND INVITE ME FOR LASAGNA PICNIC AT YOUR HOUSE OR A LUNCH OUTING AT....." and then she lists her favorite local restaurants, of which there are many. The adults in our Adult Program always take the first Monday of each month to go out to lunch. Every year, Christy has an idea for me in October that she has usually planned since the previous October. This year was no exception and so Christy and I and another client went to Christy's lunch choice that first Monday in October. Christy knew exactly where she wanted to go, what she was going to order, and what she wanted to drink. We had a nice time and no sooner were we done, Christy started planning where to go and what to do next year. This is a very determined young lady!

At the same time, Jeff and Wanda are asking me about the date for our annual holiday luncheon which we've done every year at my home for the last 5 years. Its become a tradition for them. Like Christy, Jeff has had the menu planned since last December right after our last luncheon.

These events seem like such a small, easy thing for me to do, not a big deal and easy to dismiss as not important. But not to Christy, Wanda or Jeff. For them its a very big deal because they are reliant on others for much of their social lives. And their world is very small. It makes one realize that the little things we might take for granted - a trip to the store, a swim at the Y, a coffee run to Starbucks, - even a BBQ lunch here at our program are all special events to look forward to. As they say, variety is the spice of life!