The moment I made the decision to retire as an educator I began to think about what I wanted to do next with my life. I wanted the make sure that my life still mattered and that I’d still have a meaningful life after the end of my career. I wanted to use my voice to share how I manage day to day still supporting my now adult daughter to continue to grow and change in turn that would hopefully help others to do the same. As I thought about starting this blog I thought that I’d also share one of the most valuable lesson I’ve learned so far. Building a community. Building a community of people that you trust to be in your circle will serve to be your greatest asset. When you have a loved one with special needs you may find that you sometimes need more support. The people you entrust can include immediate/extended family, friends and in some cases professional people.

My journey has included all of the above from time to time. Some people may look at asking for help as a weakness. I’ve found in my life that those times I reached out to others is when I found my greatest strength. It takes courage to know when you need help. When you find people you can trust and they reach out to offer a hand you in turn extend your hand to accept their support. Helping each other is what building community is all about.

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