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My son is now officially sixteen. Grey hairs are popping up as I type each word of this essay.

He is unlike most teenagers. First off, he is *rarely* moody, and when he does get snippy with me, he apologizes on his own with no prompting from his folks. He’s a good kid.

He’s also smart and a skilled artist and athlete. (Yes, I’m bragging)

He’s also Dyslexic.

About 17 percent of kids are Dyslexic, so you probably know someone who is, whether yourself, family, or a friend.

What’s interesting is that most folks don’t understand what Dyslexia really is. Most folks think it’s simply an inability to read. In reality, Dyslexics have a special ability to see the world in three dimensions, so while they may struggle with reading because of the linear aspects, they excel at anything involving solid objects, such as art or sports, as well as anything involving the imagination, like writing or painting or sculpting or math. Indeed, Dyslexia is a gift.

At first I wasn’t aware of this, but then I read The Gift Of Dyslexia, which opened my eyes in a wonderful way. Turns out that Dyslexics have it over us normal brains, who process most of life in a linear fashion. Dyslexics can see things from any angle.

For example, my son plays soccer, specifically defense. He is normally chosen as captain of his team, because he has this marvelous ability to view the game from any direction. It’s easy for him to envision the game from the opposing team’s vantage point and then see what there plan is, allowing him to tell his team-mates which direction to choose. Pretty awesome to watch that.

He’s also a gifted mechanic and artist, creating “tags” on paper, balancing abstract art with names or terms.

Of course, he still has trouble reading, but he learned the techniques to help him read left to right, forcing himself to comprehend as he reads. It’s hard for him, but not so hard that he can’t get an A in his Honors English class. (Oh, sorry, am I bragging again?)

Actually, let’s get real - I’m bragging, but not for my son. Instead, I’m bragging for all Dyslexics. They are much maligned and marginalized, and yet they have an almost SuperHero brain, able to deal with complex spacial relations the way the rest of us deal with making a sandwich. So, to all of you with Dyslexia, you have my complete awe and respect.

by Stu Mark

[tags]parents, parenting, kids, children, Dyslexia, gifted, school, education, reading, learning disability, birthday, reflection, growth, pride, admiration[/tags]

Photo graciously provided by clickykbd, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved