Inside Inspiration
You Don't Know Autism Written by Justin Mothorpe
You don’t know Autism,
Because if you did, you’d know how it
feels
To not open your mouth for fear of what comes out,
And,
simply because of being unable to respond correctly,
You would be
afraid of arguments and being teased.
You don’t know Autism,
Because if you did, you’d know how it
feels
To feel left behind on every assignment, and every project
you do.
If you knew, you’d know how hard it is to keep up with
others,
When it is hard enough to do things on your own.
You don’t know Autism,
Because if you did, you’d know how it
feels,
The difficulty of making small talk,
And that of making
simple conversation.
You don’t know Autism,
Because if you did, you’d know how it
feels,
To be grouped in with ‘those’ kids,
You know the
ones;
The screechers
The squeakers
Whatever you call
them,
And you’d know how much it hurts
To be insulted
When
someone calls one of ‘those’ kids autistic.
If you knew Autism, you’d have it,
As I certainly do.