“Olivia”
October 8, 1996, Olivia Grace was born. To the human eye she looked just like every
other baby that had ever been born. She had her hands clinched in a ball, a pink and blue hat on her tiny little head, and an outfit that drowned her. She looked like the perfect baby girl. I was so excited to have a baby sister!
Olivia is my second sister. She is someone that at times can make you laugh, can make you cry and can make you want to pull your hair out. She’s the lovable middle child. Olivia is someone I try to put myself in her shoes. Every day is a journey for her and it’s never easy. The easiest tasks can make or break her. She has an auditory processing disorder, which simply means she can’t process what you’re saying. She hears bits and pieces of conversations all day long. It’s like when you’re on your cell phone and you’re not getting good reception when you’re
talking to someone and you only can hear one or two words and its fading. She goes through life like that every day. She has ADD also. My parents were told when she was three years old that she had Asperger’s Syndrome-or high functioning autism. My parents would never accept that and did everything they could to bring her to normalcy.
Doctors have told my family things like “Olivia will have a hard time making friends; kids like her don’t hold friendships very well. Or things like she won’t be able to handle regular school.” Olivia has proved them all wrong. She has many friends and they all adore her. She has had the same best friend for four years now. And for the past two years she has held a solid GPA. She works for things ten times harder than normal children. For example, a sixth grade student might study for a division test a day in advance. Olivia has to bring it home weeks in advance to just get a passing grade. She has to study harder than anyone else.
She’s changed the whole dynamic of my family. When she has a test coming up the whole
family has a test coming up. We all have to help her. That may mean my Mom staying up till 11:30 p.m. for a U.S. Map test, five days in advance, or my Dad coming home from work early to help her understand her science. It means me testing her on her vocab. It means my other sister Abbigayle who is in fourth grade having to be responsible for her own homework or taking it upon her to test herself if she has a test. It also means my Kindergarten brother knowing when to get in the shower on his own before he goes to bed.
Looking at how my family comes together to help Olivia is the greatest thing. I wouldn’t change it for one second. Olivia has taught me as much as I have taught her. She helped me understand just because a person is different don’t treat them differently. Everyone deserves an equal chance. She helped me understand the importance of family sticking together when times get hard and you just want the week to be over. She taught me what love really is. It’s when you and your family can endure anything that is thrown at them and stick together and care for each family member. It really takes us all at times to help Olivia through things. The criticism like, “Olivia won’t be able to make it,” “it’s too hard for her, pull her out why you can,” only made her that much stronger.
talking to someone and you only can hear one or two words and its fading. She goes through life like that every day. She has ADD also. My parents were told when she was three years old that she had Asperger’s Syndrome-or high functioning autism. My parents would never accept that and did everything they could to bring her to normalcy.
Doctors have told my family things like “Olivia will have a hard time making friends; kids like her don’t hold friendships very well. Or things like she won’t be able to handle regular school.” Olivia has proved them all wrong. She has many friends and they all adore her. She has had the same best friend for four years now. And for the past two years she has held a solid GPA. She works for things ten times harder than normal children. For example, a sixth grade student might study for a division test a day in advance. Olivia has to bring it home weeks in advance to just get a passing grade. She has to study harder than anyone else.
She’s changed the whole dynamic of my family. When she has a test coming up the whole
family has a test coming up. We all have to help her. That may mean my Mom staying up till 11:30 p.m. for a U.S. Map test, five days in advance, or my Dad coming home from work early to help her understand her science. It means me testing her on her vocab. It means my other sister Abbigayle who is in fourth grade having to be responsible for her own homework or taking it upon her to test herself if she has a test. It also means my Kindergarten brother knowing when to get in the shower on his own before he goes to bed.
Looking at how my family comes together to help Olivia is the greatest thing. I wouldn’t change it for one second. Olivia has taught me as much as I have taught her. She helped me understand just because a person is different don’t treat them differently. Everyone deserves an equal chance. She helped me understand the importance of family sticking together when times get hard and you just want the week to be over. She taught me what love really is. It’s when you and your family can endure anything that is thrown at them and stick together and care for each family member. It really takes us all at times to help Olivia through things. The criticism like, “Olivia won’t be able to make it,” “it’s too hard for her, pull her out why you can,” only made her that much stronger.
As an all loving family there are challenges. Sometimes the stress that goes along with it makes us all fight. Olivia has a very hard time with change or anything that is sometimes different, and can get her to get very upset. An example would be on a day that you don’t have to wear a uniform to school; Olivia obsesses over what she is going to wear and gets very upset over it. To be honest, I don’t know why this upsets her so much and makes her fret so badly. Nobody else would think twice about it, but this can turn into a horrible night/or morning before school and before you know it, we’re all late. Things just domino and go from bad to worse. My Mom has to put 100% into her and sometimes takes out her frustration on myself or my siblings when she has had a bad day with Olivia.
I know Olivia won’t be the smartest kid in the room, or the top scholar. But I think when it’s all said and done at the end of the day Olivia will be the kid who has lived each day to the fullest and tried the hardest. She might not go to the best college when she’s older but if she wants something she will work for it and get it. Her entire life has been worked around the phrase “If you want something there is no easy way you have to work at it”
To everyone who has ever passed the free spirited blonde hair blue eyed twelve year old girl you wouldn’t have thought twice if she could understand anything you said or if she could concentrate. She plays on a competitive basketball and soccer team. She does swim team in the summer. She thinks Nick Jonas is the cutest Jonas brother. She thinks it’s necessary she has a cell phone and doesn’t understand why she still needs a bed time. She comes home everyday to rapidly change her uniform get on her bike and ride as fast as she can to her best friend’s house. She likes things done her way and isn’t afraid to tell you if your winter formal dress looks bad on you the day of the dance. She does what she wants when she wants too. She has the most fun every day. And doesn’t let things hold her back.
Her unique personality won’t let you forget her either. She is loud and mischievous. She doesn’t stay out of trouble for long. But she has heart of gold. She doesn’t hold grudges, and let’s things roll of her shoulders quickly. She gets mad if she comes home to a dirty house. And if you get a glass of water and walk away to go turn on the T.V. she already has the glass in the dishwasher. She would want everyday to be clear blue skies and lush green grasses. She could live outside in the woods if we let her, with just a tent and a lifetime supply of soft pretzels. I haven’t met anything or anybody that could scare her. She’s one of a kind and is going to do what she wants regardless of what you may think or say.
In the twelve years I’ve known my sister not once have heard her use an excuse. She’s aware of her disabilities. She doesn’t make an excuse to my Mom on why she failed a test, while I on the other hand would have thought of a million different excuses. She embraces that she was born differently and runs with it. Sometime she gets sad when she tells my Mom how certain kids at school call her “dumb”. My Mom just tells her that that’s the only thing they can say to her to get her and someday she’ll tell her children that she used to be called “dumb” and they won’t believe her because she is going to be so successful and great when she grows up. My Mom says that Olivia will be the child to change the way people view “stupid” kids.
Without Olivia as my sister I wouldn’t be the girl I am today. When the house is quiet I constantly wonder when she’ll be running in the back door, or when I’ll hear the latest Hannah Montana song blasting from the iHome. She’s constantly on my mind. She’s the most normal person to me and at the same time the weirdest and most unique human being to walk the planet. Her moods can go from good to bad and bad to worse in a second. Because we all are so heavily involved in her life and she requires so much attention, my days and moods can be affected by her. Usually if she is not having a good morning, she will wake up screaming and crying. My Mom has to attend to her immediately, to try to get her back on track. But we are all scampering around her trying not to make her mad, but I usually get frustrated and go to school angry and upset resulting in a terrible day. But when she is happy and in a good mood it’s some of the best days that you can ever experience.
Since I’m older and can start to understand what Olivia goes through on a regular basis, I believe God made her this way because she could handle it. She endures things ten times harder than I could even start to handle. I get completely stressed out with three tests on the same day. But she lives her life like there is a final in every single class on the same day, and while you’re trying to get what’s going to be on it, the teacher walks in and out of the classroom every second so you can only get one or two words. Olivia is something special she will change the world in
some way. You’re lucky if you get to meet her, you’re a tad bit luckier if she likes you, because then you’re on her good side. Olivia has taught me that if you’re going to do something with your life you have to make an impact. You can’t just do it half way.
Since I’m older and can start to understand what Olivia goes through on a regular basis, I believe God made her this way because she could handle it. She endures things ten times harder than I could even start to handle. I get completely stressed out with three tests on the same day. But she lives her life like there is a final in every single class on the same day, and while you’re trying to get what’s going to be on it, the teacher walks in and out of the classroom every second so you can only get one or two words. Olivia is something special she will change the world in
some way. You’re lucky if you get to meet her, you’re a tad bit luckier if she likes you, because then you’re on her good side. Olivia has taught me that if you’re going to do something with your life you have to make an impact. You can’t just do it half way.
Kids with disabilities have the most love to give. They can’t hurt anyone and only want to succeed. Without Olivia in my life today I can honestly tell you I wouldn’t have the patience to deal with people slower or different than me. I wouldn’t care as much if someone had ADD, and I wouldn’t think about if kids could hear me or not. I used to think about how horrible life would be if I had to go through life everyday like she does. After many years of living with her I can
tell you her life isn’t horrible she just lives differently than most people you will meet. She can do everything that everyone else can do but I would put $100 dollars on it that she can do it better than you. She’s the most colorful thing you’ll ever meet.
tell you her life isn’t horrible she just lives differently than most people you will meet. She can do everything that everyone else can do but I would put $100 dollars on it that she can do it better than you. She’s the most colorful thing you’ll ever meet.
1 comment:
This was very inspirational. Lauren is a very good writer; she wrote a powerful essay. Olivia and Lauren both sound like delightful people and I hope their future stays bright. Thank you for sharing.
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