Sam I Am

Sam:  "Dad, can you duct-tape me to the floor?"

Me:  "Er... what?"

Everyone needs a Sam.  Sam is my youngest child, just five years old.  He has just the slightest touch of autism, which means life is never boring for us.  Same has a relentless energy about him, an amazing enthusiasm for life, is filled with endless questions, and a huge amount of love.

After pestering me to duct tape him to the floor, or maybe even to a wall, Sam rode with me to pick up my Grandma and take her home for the night.

Sam:  "Dad, do you love having a phone?"

Me:  "Um, I guess... it's kind of nice..."

Sam:  "You can call anyone you want..... except an orphan.  In an orphanage."

Me:  "Ummmm...?"

Sam:  "Are orphanages real?"

Me:  "Yes, they're real."

Sam:  "Have you ever seen one?"

Me:  "No, I haven't"

Sam:  "How do you know they're real?"

Me:  "They have them in other places mainly... where parents die, or they can't keep their kids"

Sam:  "Oh.  Are they made out of wood?"

Me:  "Um, I guess... some are."

Sam:  "Can we drive by one?"

Me:  "I don't think there are any close by..."

Sam:  "I want to see what one looks like."

Me:  "We'll look it up on the internet."

Not sure where the momentary obsession with orphanages came from... probably from the same place his thousands of other questions come from.  He's like having a teenager wrapped up in a 5yr old's body.  Apparently, other families in our neighborhood enjoy him too, and will often share jokes, stories and other things that Sam has done over their dinner table.

I am blessed.  When the dark cloud of depression and anxiety starts to overwhelm me, Sam is like an atomic torpedo that completely obliterates the darkness and lifts me out of the depths of my own private hell.

Everyone needs a Sam  :)