Backup "Stolen Child"

Tikaani my autistic character in my fanfiction, is featured here in this drawing. But this isn't about Tikaani (though I love writing about him) but the concept of the stolen child. 

In out generation of autistic adults, teens and children I feel that parents today, still feel that we are stolen children. Of all the stories of parents writing about their autistic son or daughter, I can't help but compare them to the the perspective of a human mother trying to raise an elven or goblin child and asking for pity or some way to banish the goblin so they can have their human baby again. 

Though we are far from some sidhe switched child, that concept that we are "Stolen" still is upon us in our culture. We seem never to leave that old celtic mythos of changlings behind us. And many parents seem to cling to this view that the autism has "switch" their child and that one that they have is not it. 

I do believe that the changling story is often related to real cases of autistic children in ancient Ireland, funny how today that is still a relevent metaphore. Though fortunantly many parents have adopted us "goblins" and raised us knowing that we are "goblins" and accepting us as "goblins" to them we were never changed in the first place. Still I watch parents villanize the fact that we are goblins and begging for their human born son or daughter. Instead of accept their goblin ward and raising them as best they can and loving the fact that they have such a unique child among them (and maybe even teach them a little bit goblin culture), but many of them pity the circumstance, and some look to isolate the child and say "thats not mind I want my child back." 

Though not all parents do this and I am using a lot of metaphore and exageration here, the spirit of the Stolen Child still is among the American culture. We are looked upon as "strange" and unordinary, when in fact we are just as human as you are. Parents need to realize that we are not some aliens from another planet we're not "holland" either nor are we some fae born child switched at birth. We are like you. We may have different wiring and we see the world differently, but we are not stolen or missing. 

dear parents, we are right here in front of  you. You just weren't looking. 

A Cochran