記兩件上週發生的小事

記兩件上週發生的小事。

上週三（11/19）我跟太太帶Jabez去東山路的三商巧福吃晚餐，餐畢，一起走到旁邊的楓康超市繳費機繳停車費。Jabez突然在楓康超市外面隔著玻璃，對著裡面不相識的小朋友說：「Hi！#@&$π×……」（亂碼是我忘記的一段英文問候語😅），裡面的小朋友一臉驚訝，小心翼翼地舉手揮了揮，算是回禮。我跟太太都笑了。這又是自閉兒Jabez在人際互動上的一大進步：他已經懂得向不認識的人表達善意。

之前在特兒服事的禾場裡，Jabez會在大人、輔導的提醒、引導下做出「問候」的動作，但這只是「服從指令的行為」而已，不具備「問候」的內涵。來到新心教會後，Jabez 在這裡融入得既快且好，大人小孩都主動學習與Jabez互動，真心接納這個孩子；在主日崇拜時，Jabez 只要看到投影布幕上打出「兒童主月學開始了」的畫面，就會興奮地跳起來，跟著小朋友去上課。 

而今，Jabez 就在我們眼前，「主動」跟一位不認識的小朋友打招呼，我跟太太的笑，除了感動、喜悅，也是讚嘆神創造Jabez 這個孩子的奇妙可畏：順著神的計畫表，不要急躁，就可以看見神蹟。

「耶和華說： 我要把奇事顯給他們看， 好像出埃及地的時候一樣。 」（彌迦書7:15）

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上週六（11/22）下午，我帶著Jabez開車接太太回家。時近傍晚，西邊的夕陽彩霞正美，我對Jabez 說：「Look, it's beautiful sunset!」Jabez 將平板擱在腿上，轉頭看向車窗外，說：「Yes Jorman, it's beautiful sunset! #@&$π×…… 」（亂碼意義同上😅）

就在不久前，我在車上跟Jabez說「夕陽很美」 時，原意是想讓他認知外面的世界：看看落日、看看紅霞，看看傍晚時分的光影變化，讓他把注意力暫時從平板移開。Jabez 也只配合的看了一眼，複製了一句「yes, it's beautiful.」後，就又埋首於平板的世界裡。然而一次、兩次......，Jabez看著外面景色的時間越來越長，我才意識到：這個孩子真的在「欣賞」景色。週六那天，夕陽從可見到下山，晚霞從朱紅到暗紫，Jabez 一直瞧著，口中唸唸有詞，彷彿要把他所見的一切（也許包括感受）通通說出來，而我聽得最清楚的就是這句：「「yes Jorman, it's beautiful sunset! 」當景色被快速公路的隔音牆擋住時，Jabez還會發出無奈的嘆息聲。這個時候，平板繼續播著影片，只是被冷落在Jabez的雙腿上。

啊，beautiful。這麼簡單的字，自閉兒真的會懂＼感受嗎？那些能分享內心世界的高功能自閉症患者曾經告訴人們：他們無法理解情緒感受，所以會以圖像化的方式來分辨、歸類，好認知別人的情緒（例如：以顏色來區別，或以嘴角上揚、下彎的角度來區別）。看著Jabez認真專注地瞧著逐漸暗沉的夕陽，我不免懷疑：也許Jabez真的懂得欣賞夕陽的美呢！ 

「耶和華啊，你所造的何其多！你都用智慧造成。遍地充滿了你的豐富。」（詩篇104:24）

Here are two small events that happened last week.

Last Wednesday (11/19), my wife and I took Jabez to the San Shang Qiao Fu restaurant on Dongshan Road for dinner. After eating, we walked to the Feng Kang supermarket next door to pay the parking fee at the payment machine. Suddenly, outside the supermarket—separated only by the glass—Jabez said to a child inside whom he did not know: “Hi! #@&$π×……” (the garbled symbols represent an English greeting phrase I can’t remember😅).

The child inside looked surprised, cautiously raised his hand, and waved in return. My wife and I both laughed.

This was another big step for Jabez, our autistic child, in interpersonal interaction: he has learned to express kindness to people he doesn’t know.

When Jabez was still in the previous ministry serving children with special needs, he would “greet” others only when adults or counselors reminded or guided him to do so. It was merely an act of “following instructions,” without containing the essence of a real greeting.

After coming to New Heart Church, Jabez integrated quickly and wonderfully here. Both adults and children take the initiative to learn how to interact with him and genuinely accept him. During Sunday services, whenever Jabez sees the projection screen show the words “Children’s Sunday School has begun,” he jumps up excitedly and goes to class with the other kids.

And now, right before our eyes, Jabez proactively greeted a child he didn’t know. The smiles on my wife’s and my face were not only filled with emotion and joy, but also with awe toward the wonderful and marvelous way God created Jabez: if we simply follow God’s timetable and do not rush, we will see miracles.

“As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them marvelous things.”

— Micah 7:15

Last Saturday afternoon (11/22), I drove with Jabez to pick up my wife and bring her home. It was near dusk, and the sunset in the west was beautiful. I said to Jabez, “Look, it’s a beautiful sunset!” Jabez put down his tablet on his lap, turned to look out the window, and said, “Yes, Jorman, it’s beautiful sunset! #@&$π×……” (same meaning for the garbled symbols as above😅).

Not long ago, when I told Jabez in the car, “The sunset is beautiful,” my intention was simply to help him become aware of the world outside—look at the setting sun, the red clouds, the shifting light of early evening—so that he could momentarily take his attention off the tablet. Jabez would only cooperate by glancing outside, copying, “Yes, it’s beautiful,” then immediately burying himself again in the world of the tablet.

But once, twice… Jabez started looking at the scenery outside for longer and longer. That was when I realized: this child is truly appreciating the scenery.

On Saturday, from the moment the sun was visible until it went down, and the clouds shifted from crimson to deep purple, Jabez kept watching, murmuring to himself as if he wanted to verbalize everything he saw (and perhaps everything he felt). The sentence I heard most clearly was: “Yes, Jorman, it’s beautiful sunset!”

Whenever the soundproof barriers along the highway blocked the view, Jabez would let out a helpless sigh. Meanwhile, the tablet continued playing videos, but it was completely ignored, resting on his lap.

Ah, beautiful. Can an autistic child really understand and feel such a simple word? High-functioning autistic individuals who can express their inner world have told people that they often cannot understand emotions and thus rely on visual categorization to identify them—such as colors, or the angle of the corners of someone’s mouth.

Watching Jabez gaze intently at the darkening sunset, I couldn’t help but wonder: maybe Jabez truly can appreciate the beauty of a sunset!

“O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your riches.”

— Psalm 104:24