The sounds and the new risk of coziness in our house
In our home we know all sounds and movements. We all know exactly which sounds mean what and which are safe for us. For us, safe sounds are about what happens around Doris. We know what it sounds like when she moves around the house and we know what is more or less dangerous. In our world, we have of course adapted our home so that it works for everyone, including Doris. Doris has challenges with balance, motor skills and vision. She is infinitely helpful and does not hesitate for a second when it comes to kitchen work. Her poor balance and vision are connected. She has nystagmus. This means that her eyes involuntarily tick sideways at a rather high pace and then it's like the world is never still. This means that she doesn't climb things because she can't balance and her own logic says you walk in the middle of the road to avoid falling into the ditch. Ditches and cars are simply dangerous because neither one nor the other can be stationary for various reasons.
The motor skills then? Well, we've always known what she can do motor-wise. For example, she has difficulty with fine motor skills such as tinkering with zips, shoelaces and writing with a pencil. We also know that this is not static, but develops all the time, but perhaps a little more slowly than in other children.
Now she is 14 years old, very helpful and service oriented. One thing she likes to serve with is making coffee. There we have lift, hot water and aiming that is hopeless. She likes to fix the little surprise and this means that we are always present with the coffee making every morning and afternoon and we never leave the house without having a huge awareness about preparing the coffee maker and serving the coffee itself when it is ready. In other families, the idea that there would be any risk in this does not even exist. In the same way, we also think about stoves and ovens. It is probably a bit unusual when the children are as big as ours.
It is not troublesome, but it is a completely natural part and example of the family's everyday life. It's not something we need to talk about, but it's a little self-evident in our house. When we cook, she is involved in almost every situation and we beat ourselves up to save every situation. Because who says no thanks to a little help? We run on all balls in all weathers because we all have to be needed at work. Doris always makes a superb effort in the kitchen and we save the situation as we go along. Kind of special when I think about it. You never expected that, did you? That the wonderful help you get needs to be supported from all sides.
The other day I heard a sound that didn't add up and the alarm inside me went off. I heard a quick rasp, a ptjuu and someone whispering -Yes, I did it!
I sneaked as fast as I could in the direction of the room she was in and calmly pretended to come strolling. I see her victory gesture to herself where she "pulls" something invisible to me in the air. -Oh how nice, you've lit a candle with matches and everything. Doris nods proudly and leaves me, the light and the room. All the matches and lighters are hidden and the message that Doris can indeed now light matches goes quietly like a faint breeze through the house and everyone knows that the risk of coziness has become much higher.
