This guest post is by Parker Millerd, a young man on the autism spectrum who was diagnosed with ASD at age 6 and has been accepted into Harding University. Parker is applying for the Spring 2023 Making a Difference Autism Scholarship via the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference started by me, Kerry Magro. I was nonverbal till 2.5 and diagnosed with autism at 4 and you can read more about my organization here. Autistics on Autism: Stories You Need to Hear About What Helped Them While Growing Up and Pursuing Their Dreams, our nonprofit’s new book, will be released on March 29, 2022 on Amazon here for our community to enjoy featuring the stories of 100 autistic adults.
Weirdo. Freak. Awkward. Nerd. Different. Problem-Child. Disruptive. Exhausting. Stupid. These are just a few labels I have been given verbally and behind my back, by both peers and adults in my seventeen years of life. None of those are new to me, but if I had more to add that I wish people saw in me, it is perseverance and positivity. There are many facets to autism, and most do not fit the societal ‘norm’. To spread love, kindness and inclusivity are most important to me.
At the age of two my mom started seeing some peculiar things in my behavior. Being extremely smart in things most toddlers aren’t and my very limited vocabulary for one. My constant need to avert eye contact and very obsessive nature for favorite shows, but especially the episodes I’d want to watch over and over and over. With that continuing to evolve over time she decided to get an appointment with a specialist. Luckily, she worked as a medical transcriptionist and knew about behavioral therapists, but none of my family members had ever been exposed to someone with autism. After several appointments over the course of a year, I was given the diagnosis of autism, as high functioning on the spectrum.
Growing up my mom made sure I had play dates, other kids of her friends invite me to parties and events to try and make my own. Oh, to have friends I could tell all my obsessions to. Cats. Trains. World War II. I loved to socialize! I would not notice that no one else communicated to me their interests or did not care about what I was saying, I just kept talking. Eventually the kids would grow tired of my incessant chats, say mean things, and stop asking me to play. I eventually became one with the swing. It was the only thing that made me feel free of expectations and the mumble and jumble of understanding how to navigate people.
Much didn’t change as I moved to middle school, junior high and high school socially and how I was labeled. I have had to swallow my pain in being shunned by my peers and focus on what really matters, my future. Friends are sure nice to have and help your psyche in a world full of socially driven humans, but they do not make you who you are. I decided no matter what, I will still be that kid that will run for class president, stand in front of the entire school, and give a speech. I will join band, practicing every day after school doing something that is a real test of my motor skills and ability to control the other stimuli around me, also while learning marching steps. I will also be involved as much as possible in community club organizations and learn as much from others as I can. With these activities, they have helped me realize it does not matter if others think differently of you, eventually if you keep being yourself, they will learn to respect and accept you for who you are. Until that happens, it will be a rough road.
In the face of so much adversity, I have come to find it will not matter how much is stacked against you. It is up to you to decide if anything is worth going after and having to endure insults and nay-sayers is just what I have come to expect in my life. I will just keep going despite the doubt, just to prove I can do it for my own gratification. Though it does hurt navigating life without a lot of close friends, having people walk away when you try and strike up a conversation, it shouldn’t stop anyone from continuing to try and connect. Continuing to pursue my education and actually going to a college away from home, will also allow me to grow socially, expand my comfort zone and learn that I CAN do this while advocating on my own and educating others about ASD. The KFM Making a Difference Scholarship would help ensure that happens for me and be such a blessing.
Follow my journey on Facebook, my Facebook Fan Page, Tiktok, Youtube & Instagram.
My name is Kerry Magro, a professional speaker and best-selling author who is also on the autism spectrum. I started the nonprofit KFM Making a Difference in 2011 to help students with autism receive scholarship aid to pursue post-secondary education. Help support me so I can continue to help students with autism go to college by making a tax-deductible donation to our nonprofit here.
Autistics on Autism: Stories You Need to Hear About What Helped Them While Growing Up and Pursuing Their Dreams was released on March 29, 2022 on Amazon here for our community to enjoy featuring the stories of 100 autistic adults. 100% of the proceeds from this book will go back to our nonprofit to support initiatives like our autism scholarship program. In addition, this autistic adult’s essay you just read will be featured in a future volume of this book as we plan on making this into a series of books on autistic adults.
