The heart does go on and on.
T’s latest obsession is the Titanic, quite the step up from Paw Patrol!
This was likely inspired from YouTube, as he spends lots of time watching videos about the Titanic and other famous shipwrecks.
He loves to draw pictures and pretend play with great imagination about the doomed voyage.
I’m amused at his growing knowledge and how he snapped at me for daring to confuse the Carpathia, the ship that rescued Titanic survivors, with the Britannic, a vessel that sank four years after the Titanic after hitting a mine.
So we leveraged his interest to get chapter books to practice his reading.
He recently read Mary Pope Osborne’s “Tonight on the Titanic,” and did a good job with building his stamina and comprehension.
Raising a child with FASD feels like you’re on board a perpetual sinking ship.
FASD is truly an iceberg. What you see of the child at the tip masks much of what’s hidden below the dark surface.
You see the sharp edges at the top but you don’t see the reasons beneath the visible – sensory issues, emotional regulation challenges, impulsivity, trauma and so on.
As T’s caregivers steering the ship, we hit the FASD iceberg often and it can truly be as devastating as rising waters threatening to submerge us.
The impulse is to emulate the musicians on the deck of the Titanic, nobly playing until the end.
But honestly, sometimes the best way to respond is to board the rescue boat and try again.
One of the gifts of caring for a child with FASD is that every day is a new day, new ship, new beginning.
And yes, same fucking iceberg.
If there’s a lesson I can share with other caregivers going through the struggle of caring for someone with FASD, it’s to try to focus on the big picture and wins along the way.
There are moments that cause our hearts to rise from the bottom of the ocean where we often feel we’ve sunk down to.
Last Friday, after a particularly hard week with T, we received a lovely email from T’s music teacher.
She wrote: “T is beyond talented with composing music. He can always explore song maker on Chrome music lab. He focused on his music for 30 minutes straight.”
She shared with us a video, see below, of the song he composed.
The hubby thought it was neat but I screamed with excitement on what he did not pick up on, “It’s the Titanic theme song!”
I was blown away and shared my excitement back with his teacher who then wrote back.
“He is beyond talented. This was done all by him humming to the song and recognizing the beat. He was able to focus on this for so long. He got frustrated at points but we both laughed it off and he kept plugging away. He absolutely loves composing music. I love how he made it his own version at the end. Just brilliant 😊”
This was joy and sunshine that lifted my spirits and provided us with a great start to our weekend.
It reminded me that despite the icebergs and wreckage, the heart will go on and on.
Photo at top: Shipwreck tour at Tobermory in summer 2022.
Ab this is a wonderfully written post. I love T’s music, talent, and heart and yours for him.
LaDonna, it is so nice to hear from you. From time to time, I wonder how you are doing. I always appreciate your kind comments and yes, T’s heart gets us through some of those moments when our life feels like a sinking ship. 😊😆
Take care and stay well!
This post is music to my ears! I love how you turn the challenges all around and manage to not crash (entirely) into the icebergs. What an adventure! Love is your GPS.
Thank you Stacy. Love is your GPS is such a wonderful phrase and it does help us when we are lost indeed! 🙏💕
WOW! Loved all of this! The metaphors, the honesty, the optimism and realism, the Titanic theme song! – Thanks, Ab!
Thanks Vickie! 😊 Hope you’re continuing to have a great time in Florida!
We are back!!! So happy to be home 😀
I just love this. A big win is his love of music, and his ability to compose music! That is no easy feat!!!!!!! There isn’t any way you can send me the song he composed? I would love to hear it. I love your posts. The iceberg underneath is so true. You are such an inspiration to caregivers, teachers, and of course, us living with an FASD 🙂
Nevermind I see the play button now. LMAO
😆
Thanks Rebecca! I know you can definitely relate and understand the iceberg analogy!
I love how the journey goes, I love this. The other day i was thinking, what happened to Dinosaur Train and Pokemon.
Thanks Gary. It’s interesting the things that keep us up at night! 😆 I think Pokémon recently rebooted with a new protagonist. No more Ash and Pikachu.
Wow wow wow – I didn’t recognize the song either. So good!
I love the full circle nature of this post – the Titanic, the icebergs, the song. And to cap it all off, your ability as a parent to keep the boat afloat and bring it all together. Absolutely amazing!
Hope you all have a great weekend!
Thanks Wynne. It was a wonderful surprise when it sunk in – pun intended! – which song it was. 😊
Have a wonderful weekend over there too!
Your little boy is growing up and has a wonderful new talent!
Thanks Diane. Yes he is. I noticed in the photo that he is getting tall! I can’t wait till he surpasses me. And yes, he does have a musical gift. 😊🙏
From Paw Patrol to the Titanic? That’s fast! 😆 It looks like T really has a talent for composing music, something I can only be envious of. To be able to recognize the beat and recreate the song in his own way is amazing!
Speaking of the iceberg, have you watched this SNL skit on the iceberg? While it’s funny, I found a deeper meaning behind it. Everyone blames the iceberg for being there. But… (I’ll leave it there in case you haven’t seen it.)
Thanks Bama. He does have quite the musical gift and enjoys music in general. The benefits of being a YouTube native! 🙏😊
I have not seen the SNL skit on the iceberg. I’ll have to look it up!
PS. Just read about the volcano eruption in Indonesia. Hope you and your family are ok!
That’s true. Being a YouTube native does have its perks. A while ago, I watched a video about someone breaking down the soundtrack of Dune and thinking, this is amazing!
That eruption, while quite big and dramatic, happened far from where I live. Thanks for checking, Ab!
Amazing! Yeah, your ship is definitely not sinking, just keep an eye out for those invisible icebergs and take a torch at them 🙂
Thanks Margie. Yes, if I could just torch or nuke those icebergs, life would be so much easier. 😆😂
I love this! What a smart and inquisitive boy! He probably knows more about shipwrecks than I do.
You have been conquering these icebergs with such grace and love!!
Blessings!
Thanks Ana. Definitely blessed for his persistently curious nature. 😊🙏
Wow…and wow. Glimmers of goodness all around, the stuff that will remind you to “board the rescue boat and try again” when needed. Cheers to T’s musicianship! 🥰
Thank you Vicki. 😊🙏
What a beautiful and powerful analogy, Ab, with the ship and the iceberg. What a gift to recreate music from memory! I think you may have a future musician on your hands. 😊
Thanks Erin. I could see creativity or something hands on, like the skilled trades, in his future. 😊🙏
From Paw Patrol to Titanic, that’s quite the interesting shift in obsessions! It’s great how you build off his interests to work on some of his skills, like reading. That’s amazing that T crafted some music to the iconic song from Titanic. So good!! I now really want to watch that movie!
Thanks Linda. It really is quite the shift, isn’t it!? 😆 It’s worth a rewatch isn’t it? I keep expecting the ending to change but it’s always a tearjerker. 😆
Well there is something to nurture and encourage Ab. Just imagine the possibilities ahead for T 🙂
Thanks Deb. In my most frustrated moments, I despair about his future. But these moments are a blessing and remind me that there are possibilities ahead. 🙏😊
Love this Ab!
Thank you Tammy! 😊🙏