The New Normal

Trey Smith

That night, I discovered a card he’d left next to my bedside: “Throughout our life, we constantly redefine ‘normal.’ While we yearn for previous definitions of the word, building a new normal is what we must do. The next definition is more important than the last one. Rest assured, you and your body will find the new normal soon.”
~ from Why I Wouldn't Let My Husband Touch My Breasts by Kate Barasz ~

In all honesty, I only clicked on the link to this article due to the titillating title (bad pun), but what I found was a poignant story about a woman and her supportive husband. The note he left her -- after having both of her breasts removed -- is one that should speak to each of us, regardless of the circumstances we face.

It's an especially important message for an autistic person like me -- a person who doesn't deal with change well.

As my wife and I have decided that home ownership is not a sustainable path for us, I am beginning to come to grips with the fact that my normal will be changing in the coming year. I suspect that sometime within the next twelve months, we will say goodbye to this house -- a home I cherish -- to begin a new adventure in an abode far smaller than this one. This means I will have to give up my upstairs space -- 2 bedrooms and a large area between them. In its place, I will need to learn to be happy in much more cramped quarters.

To help me navigate these uncharted waters, I will try to remember a portion of the husband's note above: The next definition [of normal] is more important than the last one.