Dear Cashier,

Sound the alarm!  We were out of milk.  Now, this is a big deal to any family with five kiddos...or four...or any... but, to this special guy, this is a big deal.  You see, his main food group is cereal.  Honey Nut Cheerios to be quite exact.  He was hungry, and he wanted some cereal.  As I lovingly told him we were out of milk, my dear hubby offered to run to the store.  Titus decided he wanted to go too.  Alarms were now sounding off in my head.  What if the store was busy?  What if the line was too long, and he got overwhelmed?  The list of "what if's?" gets long quick.  After a moment's hesitation and a deep breath, my amazing hubby told Titus he could go.  A few moments later, they were off in "daddy's car", and I started praying for their quick trip.  Frankly, I held my breath until they returned. 

After about twenty minutes they returned, milk in hand, with a few stories.  Of course, the store was all decked out for Christmas, and Titus bounced around noticing all the "Santa" stuff.  This was the first year he even knew of the existence of Santa, and it was fun.  Richard told me of the bank teller's noticing his cute antics, and smiling at the cute little blond with his daddy, yelling, "Ho, Ho, Ho!" in his robust "Santa" voice. 

After successfully finding the much needed milk, they got in line.  The cashier noticed the four gallons of milk, and commented on how much milk it was.  Richard said something about the need to eat cereal plus five kiddos.  "Cereal? It's a little late for cereal!"  Titus picked up on the conversation, and made a slurping sound, rubbed his tummy, and exclaimed, "Yummy, cereal!!"  At this point, the cashier realized our son was a-typical, turned her head down, and finished the transaction as quickly as possible-not to say another word.  Part of me is glad I wasn't in the store with them.  Part of me is sad I wasn't there.  Not to lecture her, shame her, or let her know how disappointing her actions were, but to learn how amazing our boy is.  Not too long ago, he would not have made it through the store, let alone the check-out line.  Believe me when I tell you, I've had many "well-meaning" adults threaten to have my son, "clean the store" or "stay here without mom" or let me know what they did to kids in the "olden days."  And then, he did so much more than just survive a trip-he engaged-with words!  The magnitude of amazingness that is is almost impossible for me to share.  I just celebrated his third Christmas saying, "mom".  He is almost 6.  He couldn't even engage with his own mother for the first 2 1/2 years of his life, and now he did with a cashier. 

So, dear cashier, I understand you were uncomfortable.  Maybe you were afraid to offend.  I get that.  Maybe you have a painful story in your past-a family or friend who you watched struggle, and it stabbed your heart.  I get that, too.  Maybe, well, there are a thousand different scenarios that could fit here.  I want you to know I am not embarrassed of my son.  I am so proud of him, my heart feels like it could burst.  I am so grateful for how far he has come, for who he is.  I have five miracles in my life, and he is one of them.  And know this, if you had engaged him, he would have smiled at you, and probably come around the line and given you a huge hug.  And, for the record, he came home and had a huge bowl of cereal.  He had, after all, braved the store for just that.