I was walking to my next class, like any other day. I opened the creaking door to my directors face peering at me. Chairs lined up, one by one, in rows. On the wall,  I stare at this moto, “Marcus Theatre has H.E.A.R.T.!”. I just wondered, why we never use the Moto or even address what it means to the department. We just joke about it. I crossed through all the lines of chairs and sat next to one “friend” of mine.

As the bell rang, I started talking to her about my aquatic science class and how I miss it. Sometimes, how it was fun and why it is interesting. She turned around, and blasted, gloated and told me how a lot of people in that aquatic science class are stupid. How it was so easy. I was not surprised by that comment at all. She always talked about how that class moved slow and she could sleep walk through it. I always wanted to scream at her,“Well, this class may be that hardest class for some people!”  I felt it was directed to me in some way. I just wished I could leave her and cut her out of my life. I only talked her in theatre and that science class. If she only knew!

I took this to heart because I have always had a hard time in school. I wish I could cake walk through school and have A’s in all my classes. That’s just not how it worked out for me. I was three years old, when I was diagnosed with autism. It really changed how I viewed people, the world, and who I was as person. I lost lots of friends over telling them that I had autism. I even had people making fun of me for not being able to spell or that I was stupid. It made me want to hide this supposed “label”. This label made me want to hide in a hole, made think I was stupid, and made me feel horrible about who I was.

Autism is different for every person. There is spectrum or a range of how autism is characterised. Lower functioning kids struggle to talk, have sensory issues; like loud noises, and learning new skills. With higher functioning kids, they struggle with making new friends, keeping up in school, and can be very particular about food. These are only some things that people with autism struggle with. I struggle with making new friends and school is so challenging. Everything was always a struggle.

When I think back, about that girl and what she said, I think how insecure she was. I had a support teacher in that class to help me. She would not stop talking about that how current students were stupid. I’m just happy I’m not around her as much anymore.

The only thing is, when I tell my story, I don’t want pity points or for them to  see my label that society has given to me. I’m just like everyone else. I drive to school, had a job, do after school rehearsals, and do my homework. If you're reading this, perhaps this helps you understand people with disabilities.