Chalk Festival Photo Essay by Jerry O’Brien

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Huge love and thanks to our wonderful friend and supporter Mr. Jerry O’Brien. Your photographs truly captured OUR DAY! You are a strong uniting force as we lovingly team up to CELEBRATE DIFFABILITIES!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: autism chalk festival, Autismhwy chalk festival, bj lane, brent anderson, covina chalk festival, darryl black, Joel Anderson, Jorge Marquez, josh elmore, kelly green, kevin rose, mayor of covina walter allen, senator ed hernandez, shane mckaskle, Who's Clayton
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Just a Mom

That’s me, one of the many million lucky beings on this planet.  Today is our day to celebrate that label of fate or not! We all have memories and stories we share about our origins. “Our Mothership” lol. Some wonderful and others, not so wonderful.  The older I become the more I see the depth of the language people choose and the concepts not always seen at first glance. I no longer skim over words and thoughts a person reveals. I carefully contemplate and assign energy to each and every layer of their process. People do say what they mean when you listen deeply. Our Mother’s become so integral as to how we see ourselves and define our futures. Reading the thoughts and experiences from friends on-line today have me contemplating it all. Motherhood and all that is demanded and expected from it. YIKES, when you think it through you may be finding a day ‘assigned’ to that a bit overwhelming!

 

Mom on a mission, Super Mom, Warrior Mom…Autism Mom??…NO, I like to keep it simple. Just a Mom. That is enough.

 

 

 

 

God saw fit to bring Wyatt into my life to inspire me. Inspire me to take my energy into a field of thought. A field of thought needing to be written by many Autistic people; Mom’s, Fathers, brothers, sisters, daughters and sons. Authentically written from the depths of what instincts are telling us. Change your perspective about your energy in the universe. Your origin your perception your mothership.

 LOVE is instinctual. Looking at things from ALL ANGLES is learned!!

Tags: autismhwy.com, kelly green, Mothers day, wyatt green
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The Third Time Was Charming!

 

 

 

 

 

It has been 2 full weeks since our 3rd Annual Awareness Chalk~Art Festival ! A huge thanks to all of the many wonderful friends, artists, sponsor/partners and politicians  that have joined us along the way creating this cutting edge day! For the last 3 yrs in a row the 2nd Saturday in April has shown, and shown bright. Not in the rays of blue light, that

people have become conditioned to associate with Autism. For us ‘Autism Shines’ in a rainbow of colors. Colors sometime light, sometimes dark and sometime bright.  It has shown people that it IS okay to be different. To be who we are in a rainbow of colors in a rainbow of behaviors and in a rainbow of ideas and trains of thought. So much difference to celebrate and support.

 

 

Beautiful ART, Inspiring speeches and acknowledging presentations by Senator Ed Hernandez, Mayor of Covina Walter Allen III Council Member Jorge Marquez made us feel very accepted and appreciated!!

Music by Who’s Clayton was the talk of the event. Kevin Rose, Josh Elmore and Darryl Black are on to something very good! Their original music and awesomely fun twists on old favorites made everyone’s day! Having their good vibrations floating through the air was amazing to say the least.

http://music.whosclayton.com/

If you haven’t heard of them yet you will. We are very honored to have had their super-star performance while creating our stellar ART! They were a perfect addition to our fun. After lead singer Kevin Rose won a GRAND PRIZE Conga drum during the raffle we sure hope they will be our Festival band for life!

After a day of Chalk and Play a much awaited magical  moment for our San Gabriel Valley kids!! The one and only Ms. Keri Bowers drumming up the amazing inspiration and interaction to connections she holds. TRULY MAGICAL!! Keri has an intuitive way of opening spectrum kids up to possibility. She speaks to ALL of our rocking ‘different drummers’ in ways they can hear the beat! Keri@normalfilms.com

 

 

Our sponsors pulled out all of the stops AGAIN!!

Donating cash, products, services and PRIZES!! AMAZING COMPANIES!! Local & On-Line!! Please Support them!

What a way to wrap up the event…with something fun for everyone to try and win…These organizations are winners to champion OUR DAY!! We thank you all greatly!

 

 

We had an amazing crew of volunteers that brought and set up tables, student volunteers helping with strong supportive hands. Friends putting their heart into our ART! We owe so much to so many helpful, talented and giving friends. Our hats are off to all of you! We could never have done it with out you! We LOVE and honor ”Team Chalk!”

 Last year’s guest appearance of Aspie Artist Silke Heyer from Germany was fondly remembered….and LOOK she and her recruits fondly remembered US. Chalking along side of us from where they stand on this fantastic planet.

Universal Good Vibrations…Chalk festival #1 Braunschweig Germany!

 

The connection through Art and Autism had us thinking on the same plane literally….California via Germany. With out telling our good friend and partner Silke the plan of wanting  a “Yellow-Brick Road” painted through-out the grounds of the event. (With alas, no time to bring it to life in California) My highly intuitive partner and kindred spirit in ART took care of that WISH in a most beautiful  and telepathic way!

 STUNNING ON MANY LEVELS…..

Follow the Yellow-Brick Road…& CHALK with us…EVERY April on the 2nd SATURDAY!

 

Thank you again to all of the colorful friends that are taking this glorious path to acceptance with

us. SEE YOU next year!

 

 

 NEXT BLOG: PHOTOS from PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER Jerry O’Brien!!!

 

 

 

Tags: autismhwy.com Chalk Art festival, autistic self advocacy network logo, council member jorge marquez, kelly green, Keri Bowers, mayor of covina walter allen, senator ed hernandez, silke heyer
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A Darker Shade of Rose

 

 

As Wyatt grows into a young man it was bound to happen. My rose-colored specs would grow wiser and yes, darker. If you have ever happened upon this blog then you know I have an exuberance for life and all things Autism. Some may say an ’unrealistic exuberance’ but, I say that ‘u.e.’ doesn’t exist. IF you are exuberant about something, you believe in it wholeheartedly. I believe in Autism and I am not unrealistic about it. I live with it as an outsider looking in.  I feel it empathetically, I watch it’s every move, but I don’t experience it. That is Wyatt’s forte. His experience that I study and learn from. I learn for him and I learn for me. I learn for my day to day life, I learn for the culture and the world that we live in. It is my duty.  Honestly, I believe it is all of our duties!

The energy that is life, is contained and expressed in so many differing ways by each unique person. People have no groundwork on people. No one understands the basic framework we all operate under and how the working parts may differ and translate this world. Physically, chemically, electrically and emotionally.  Making “sense” of this is quite a delicate and combustible endeavor you must admit. Anything can go wrong and often does! People are amazing creatures and it’s time we researched ourselves….we should all be googling our own mind-body connections that create our behavior. Understand it and define it. OWN yourselves…mind and body. Recognize and understand who you are and how you feel and how that translates. You may be surprised where you find yourself fitting in. We are all on this spectrum of humanity and how we feel it the same and differently!

What I want all people to learn is that my son is exactly like any other person. That is the part that most people don’t understand about him or Autism in general. The Autistic person’s heart, mind and soul are always intact. Perceiving and sensing this world through a different wiring/processing system. Able to communicate in wide ranging ways. In varying degrees from A to Z. My son’s system I call his…[Autism priZm]… seems to bend the stimulus in ways that his system can receive it. He expresses those transmissions with the  sounds and movements available and natural to him. Working on the HWY’s of his mind that are wired for traffic! Communicating in his way. At times a symphony or at times a storm of raw nerves. We try and adapt to each new day and these stimuli as they come.  Using tools we have learned to relieve or harness this energy and funnel it productively. This lifestyle transforms us into quite the flexible team. I have been wearing these rose-colored glasses since long before Wyatt was born. It’s who I am, making me a solid choice to be this boy’s mother. Everyday he continues to challenge my resolve, my attention to detail and my deductive powers. He is my Autism mentor.

 

 

Currently the onset of his teen years are playing havoc on his framework. He has surges of adrenaline and testosterone that his system has a hellish time translating. As if his blood is literally boiling through his veins. In these moments he ‘bangs it out’. How many of us rub, massage and press firmly (or even bang) on areas of discomfort we may have? When Wyatt has these phases of discomfort/frustration his system demands the same x 100 or x 1000… Make your own amplification to drown out your pain. It’s a common practice. It’s a ‘human thing’. We ourselves or family members all do the same in an array of techniques. Both positive and negative if we really look. People are blessed with a miraculous central nervous system. How each of us operates on that system and amplifies stimuli  is what we need to tune in to. Why NOT do a little fine tuning people? Dial your mind and body into what is really going on within your framework . Understand your system and the differing systems of others…..All shades of rose are beautiful light, dark and everything in between. So put on your spectrum specs and get real!

 

 

Tags: autism prism, autism teen yrs., autismhwy, kelly green, mind-body connection, rose colored glasses, sensory differences, What is Autism, wyatt green
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