Parent Conferences

Today marks the end of parent conference week. I love sitting down with parents, getting to know them and talking about their child's progress. This year I had 2 conferences that involved tears. These weren't negative or angry tears. They were tears of grief of the reality of a degenerative disease, and tears of grief from the isolation that comes with having a child struggle with mental illness. Through these tears came support and understanding, so they were healthy tears. Difficult, sad tears, but healthy nonetheless. My heart aches for the many families dealing with the day-to-day reality of having a child with special needs. Each child is a blessing from the Lord with their own capabilities, personalities and other unique traits. It can be extremely isolating to have a child with behavioral or physical difficulties. If you know someone with a special needs child, could you reach out to them and tell them they are not alone? It might bring tears, but they might just be tears of relief that someone cares.