As we end our time here in Jenin, we have been invited over to several peoples’ homes. Yesterday, we had the opportunity to visit the village and home of one of our translators. She lives a little bit further away, so we had to plan a longer day. It was a beautiful village situation on the side of a hill with views of the surrounding farms and villages. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch with her mother and sisters and then we were able to go on a long walk along the hills with one of their neighbors. People have been so welcoming and happy to have us spend time with them. We ended up spending the night at their house and returning to Jenin this morning. We will also spend today at a couple different peoples homes.
On another note, I had recently been talking with Katrina about a book my work had me read when I first started in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis as a therapist. They had us read the book “Let Me Hear Your Voice: A Families Triumph Over Autism”, by Catherine Maurice. This was written by a mother who had two children diagnosed with Autism and her experiences with Applied Behavior Analysis. Her children received intensive ABA services from Dr. Brigitte Taylor when she began providing services early in her career. The thing that I loved about this book, is that it helpful to see how the process was a struggle in the beginning, but it also shows how well the children did because of receiving these services. I wish that this book was translated into Arabic for these families here, so that they would have another mother’s story to read about their journey.
Tomorrow, we will have our final review training with the mothers, followed by a celebration. It will be sad to say good-bye to these families.
Sarah
The Jenin Autism Project 