My Story
Since I can remember, Disneyland has always been my special place to go to. Some things that I love about it are the rides, the food, meeting characters, and of course, the fireworks. Mostly, I love the rides because they make me feel entertained. It’s been a special tradition for years, so that me and my family could spend some family time together, starting from when I went to Disney World in Florida for the first time, even though I usually end up going to Disneyland in California now. Usually on my trips to this place, I got to go with my whole family, including Mom, Dad, my brother George, my sister Abigail, and my grandma, Nonnie. My Mom and Dad used to take us to Disneyland when they’re together, but since the year Mom and Dad broke up, they take us separately. Even though I enjoy this place so much, There are still things about it that make me nervous or scared. I get nervous to try new things, like going on a ride that I’ve never been before, especially when it’s a new one that I will or won’t like. Or maybe even when I want to meet a character like Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck, but when I´m in the line for a few moments, I might even feel nervous as well.
One trip that sticks out the most in my mind is September 15th, 2018. The reason this sticks out is that I got to go on a new ride that I’ve never been on. Before going to Disneyland that day, I was getting prepared for the ride by watching videos about it. The videos help me know what to expect so that I can go on the ride without being nervous. And the ride I was going on was known as, “Soarin’ Around The World”. From the moment we arrived at the second park of Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, I’ve been wanting to try that ride for a while. I was anxiously waiting for the moment to come where I would get to go on that ride. My body was tense, and I did not know if I could say it yet... We decided to go on some other rides first, and then right after that, I told dad on what ride to go next, and I said, “Can we go on Soarin’ Around The World?” and he said, “Of course.” then we lined up for “Soarin’ Around The World”. Even though I was fully ready to go on that ride, I still felt a bit nervous about going on the ride in person, because I never knew what it would do to me when I’m actually on the ride itself. When I entered the queue, the first thing I noticed was collection of pictures of famous aviators, and they were all in the “Hall of Aviator Fame”. The second thing I noticed was the music, which made me feel very happy, it made me think that this is going to be a fun ride. Even though I was fully prepared, I saw a instructional video to help me feel more calm and relaxed. I got on the ride vehicle, which almost represents a hang glider, but I had to sit on it, because we're not actually riding on an actual hang glider. I put on my seatbelt, getting prepared for the ride. Once I heard the words, “We are ready for takeoff!”, The ride started by taking us up to a giant projection screen which represents the ride itself. We went through clouds at the start, which led us to sights that are all over the world, including the Sydney Harbour, The Great Wall Of China, the Eiffel Tower, and more. Going on this ride felt so realistic that it inspired me to travel to places around the world. When I was on the ride, it felt like I was actually flying on a hang glider, even the wind effects felt like that as well! Instead of letting my fear stop me from going, I’m really glad that I got to experience something new.
When a message comes into my brain from anywhere in my body, my brain tells my body how to react. For example, if I accidentally touch a hot stove, the nerves in my skin shoot a message of pain to my brain. my brain then sends a message back telling the muscles in my hand to pull away. Another example: If I were to be scared for a ride that I had never been on before, my brain will send a message, telling me that it would be too scary for me to go on a new ride that looks scary. And since I have autism, I found out that a newly published brain-tissue study suggests that children affected by autism have a surplus of synapses, or connections between brain cells. And also, it feels like there is 3 wires connected to my brain, while an extra 4th wire is hanging out, but not connected. And the 4th wire has to do with social interactions and social norms. Some social interactions that are a struggle for me are making new friends, talking to my family, and talking to my group members. And a reason why it’s hard to talk to them is that I don’t know what to say, but I really do want to talk to people. I also like being by myself and hanging out with someone. The people in my class are really nice to me, and they make me feel happy like how I am right now.
I think my power comes from overcoming fears that I have, because of interacting with some stuff that I don’t understand. For Example; It could be hard to do the work at school when the problem or the work itself is hard. I think it’s good for me to have autism, but sometimes it could be hard for me. And because I have Autism, it could be hard to try new things. Having Autism brings some challenges that I have to overcome, like making new friends, big presentations, or learning new things. And when I try new things, it helps me to do them more often, which it helps me to not be nervous or scared about them. And overcoming my fears could make me want to do them again, which could open up a world of possibilities that I never knew before. And I would like to thank my Mom, my Dad, and everyone in my family for inspiring me to make this story possible. I could’ve done it without you guys. God bless you.
One trip that sticks out the most in my mind is September 15th, 2018. The reason this sticks out is that I got to go on a new ride that I’ve never been on. Before going to Disneyland that day, I was getting prepared for the ride by watching videos about it. The videos help me know what to expect so that I can go on the ride without being nervous. And the ride I was going on was known as, “Soarin’ Around The World”. From the moment we arrived at the second park of Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, I’ve been wanting to try that ride for a while. I was anxiously waiting for the moment to come where I would get to go on that ride. My body was tense, and I did not know if I could say it yet... We decided to go on some other rides first, and then right after that, I told dad on what ride to go next, and I said, “Can we go on Soarin’ Around The World?” and he said, “Of course.” then we lined up for “Soarin’ Around The World”. Even though I was fully ready to go on that ride, I still felt a bit nervous about going on the ride in person, because I never knew what it would do to me when I’m actually on the ride itself. When I entered the queue, the first thing I noticed was collection of pictures of famous aviators, and they were all in the “Hall of Aviator Fame”. The second thing I noticed was the music, which made me feel very happy, it made me think that this is going to be a fun ride. Even though I was fully prepared, I saw a instructional video to help me feel more calm and relaxed. I got on the ride vehicle, which almost represents a hang glider, but I had to sit on it, because we're not actually riding on an actual hang glider. I put on my seatbelt, getting prepared for the ride. Once I heard the words, “We are ready for takeoff!”, The ride started by taking us up to a giant projection screen which represents the ride itself. We went through clouds at the start, which led us to sights that are all over the world, including the Sydney Harbour, The Great Wall Of China, the Eiffel Tower, and more. Going on this ride felt so realistic that it inspired me to travel to places around the world. When I was on the ride, it felt like I was actually flying on a hang glider, even the wind effects felt like that as well! Instead of letting my fear stop me from going, I’m really glad that I got to experience something new.
When a message comes into my brain from anywhere in my body, my brain tells my body how to react. For example, if I accidentally touch a hot stove, the nerves in my skin shoot a message of pain to my brain. my brain then sends a message back telling the muscles in my hand to pull away. Another example: If I were to be scared for a ride that I had never been on before, my brain will send a message, telling me that it would be too scary for me to go on a new ride that looks scary. And since I have autism, I found out that a newly published brain-tissue study suggests that children affected by autism have a surplus of synapses, or connections between brain cells. And also, it feels like there is 3 wires connected to my brain, while an extra 4th wire is hanging out, but not connected. And the 4th wire has to do with social interactions and social norms. Some social interactions that are a struggle for me are making new friends, talking to my family, and talking to my group members. And a reason why it’s hard to talk to them is that I don’t know what to say, but I really do want to talk to people. I also like being by myself and hanging out with someone. The people in my class are really nice to me, and they make me feel happy like how I am right now.
I think my power comes from overcoming fears that I have, because of interacting with some stuff that I don’t understand. For Example; It could be hard to do the work at school when the problem or the work itself is hard. I think it’s good for me to have autism, but sometimes it could be hard for me. And because I have Autism, it could be hard to try new things. Having Autism brings some challenges that I have to overcome, like making new friends, big presentations, or learning new things. And when I try new things, it helps me to do them more often, which it helps me to not be nervous or scared about them. And overcoming my fears could make me want to do them again, which could open up a world of possibilities that I never knew before. And I would like to thank my Mom, my Dad, and everyone in my family for inspiring me to make this story possible. I could’ve done it without you guys. God bless you.