My Broken Fiat
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You're Not Listening to Me!

5/22/2014

3 Comments

 
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I have been having a very rough time getting Vincent to pay attention to directions.  Because he's all over the place, I need to be very firm with him sometimes.

"Vincent, look at me.  Look at me in the eyes, Vincent.  VINCENT."

Then he'll finally realize I'm talking to him and look at me for a split second before turning his attention elsewhere.

"Vincent.  Mommy is talking to you.  You need to look at Mommy."

He looks at me again for about two seconds.  When I think I've got his attention, I begin to tell him to get on his shoes.  No dice.  He's not paying attention again.

"Vincent, put on your shoes or we're not going outside."

Begins to move towards shoes, but clearly only discerned the word "shoes" because once he gets to where his shoes are, he makes no move to put them on.

*Sigh*

"Vincent, you're not listening to Mommy.  Look at me in the eyes."

He looks into my eyes.

"Put. Your. Shoes. On or we're not going outside."

"Okay, Mommy."

UUUUUGH.  Then the process all but repeats itself if he needs to put on his jacket or take a back pack with him.  It's enough to drive me bonkers sometimes.

He's also having issues with impulse control.  

"Vincent, stop smacking your stick against the slide."

"Okay, Mommy."

Not two seconds later, he's smacking at the slide again.

"Vincent, look at Mommy in the eyes.  Did I just tell you to stop smacking the slide?"

"I don't know."

ARGH.  

"Vincent, stop smacking the slide.  If you smack the slide again, I'm going to take away your stick.  No more smacking the slide, 'cause if the stick breaks, you might get hurt."

"Okay, Mommy."

He stops smacking the slide, but maybe two minutes later, he's at it again and I need to take the stick away.

All day, every day, this is what I sound like.  I'm trying to splice together the negatives with positives ("Good job being gentle with Zoey!" or "I'm so proud of you for playing so nicely with your friends!"), but I've been feeling really overwhelmed by his inability to really listen and process directives (an ability he HAS to have for a productive experience in school).  

I'm beginning to worry that I won't be able to prep him in time for school in July and that I'll be faced with him being removed again.  I realize that's not likely, especially because this school had worked with him for two years successfully, but I can't help but worry.  

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And then there's his litany of "I'm Sorry."

Since he hasn't been listening to directives, I've had to punish him (taking away the stick, for example, or not letting him go to the park because he'd thrown a temper tantrum that morning).  

When he realizes he's about to be punished, he immediately says "I'm sorry" because he knows that's what is expected of him.  However, he's not usually sorry.  He'll say "I'm sorry" and in the same breath, "I'm really angry with you" because I'm taking away a toy or something.  He's not sorry he didn't listen.  He's sorry he's in trouble.

I was about to say to him "I don't want to hear 'I'm sorry' from you ever again" until I stopped myself.  Why?  Because I saw myself in him.  Painfully so.  

How many times do I have to apologize in the Confessional for the same stupid sins over and over and over again?  I have to wonder - am I really sorry at all?  If I were, wouldn't I stop myself from getting into the same trouble?  

And if God were to shirk my apologies, what would I do then?  He even accepts my miserable contrition and extends mercy.  How much more, then, should I work to extend that to Vincent so he has an example of what God's mercy looks like? 

So I stopped myself from giving into my own frustration and sat him on my knee.  I said, "Vincent, when you say "Sorry" to Mommy, it means you're not going to do the bad thing anymore.  Sorry means you're going to work really hard at listening and doing the right thing, okay?"

He instantly shook his head "Yes" because that's what he thought he was supposed to do. I just sighed and let him loose.  I imagine that's how God feels sometimes when He sends us forth from the Confessional.  

I'm going to try a lot harder to be more steady in my resolve to "sin no more and avoid the near occasion of sin."

A lot harder.

Sorry, Lord.  Really.  <3

3 Comments
Dom
5/31/2014 01:30:53 pm

Hee hee. I love this. "You're not listening to me! Look at me. LOOK AT ME! You need to LISTEN to me!"

Why can I totally, TOTALLY see God tearing His hair out like this?

Reply
Maeghan Miller link
1/7/2015 06:16:14 am

I just found your blog and love it. I am a convert of almost 2 years. I have 2 boys. My 11 y.o. Cameron has Asperger's, OCD, SPD and ADHD. Yep, alphabet soup behind his name. He is totally high functioning and fully integrated into his 5th grade at a Catholic School. He has been since Kindergarten. I read this and remember those days. I still have those days. Thank you for writing such and honest blogs.
Blessings,
Maeghan

Reply
Gina
1/8/2015 03:42:08 am

Glad you found me, Maeghan!

I'm so glad your son is doing so well. Besides being wonderful in and of itself, it's such a relief for me to know that successful integration CAN happen in a Catholic school! Did you guys do a lot of OT in the school?

{hugs} to you and yours!

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