No, we don’t have a pet, so that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about the housebroken that happens when your house is broken into, as happened to me last week. Yes, I have a burglar alarm, but no, I did not have it on. I was gone for only three hours, from 1 to 4 p.m. I was running some errands in the neighborhood, knew that I wouldn’t be gone long, so felt that it was not necessary to put the alarm on.

The burglary and vandalism was reported by Fox News and if you saw the report, you saw what a mess they left. Pulling out dresser drawers and dumping the contents, emptying shelves and even unmaking a bed. I had been feeling secure because of the burglar alarm, and I thought of breakins  as happening at night. (I do know better). I have learned my lesson and will always turn my alarm on when I leave the house.  Thank  God that PJ and I were not at home, but of course they knew that.

Many times. I would not set the alarm because I did not want PJ to become interested in it. You never know what will interest him. When he discovered the thermostat for the furnace, he was constantly turning it up or down or off. When we became extra cold or extra hot, we would check the thermostat, and sure enough , the setting would be changed. When it first happened, I almost called the furnace company before I realized what had happened.  When I caught him changing the thermostat, I  told him it would break.  That seemed to stop him.

The burglars entered and exited through a window. They took a lot of items,  but they did not take anything big.  I was surprised that they took my prescription pills, (they left the Motrin). That meant I had to call the insurance company and the pharmacy to replace the medication. I believe they were looking for drugs, money and jewelry.

The conversation came up again about me moving out of Detroit. I love Detroit and I feel that the negative happenings are reported far more than the positive. There are many wonderful people and places in Detroit and I realize that negative forces are everywhere.  There have also been burglaries in the suburbs, (maybe not as many) so I am staying put, but now I am a little wiser.

I’ve said that having a child with autism does not exempt us from all the other problems in the world. I think that having a child with autism for 36 years has helped me to know what to not let upset me. I have reached my saturation point in getting upset and try to remain  as calm as possible, now. PJ is more calm when I am calm.

I consistently read things that help me to remain positive.  In 1995, I published a book of poems that I wrote , “Let There Be Light”.  During that time, I was reading a very uplifting publication called “PhenemonNEWS.” I included something in the book  from “PhenemonNews” and I am including it here. It is a quote from one of their contributing writers Rishikavi Raghudas.

“Darkness is capable of anything. I will not contribute to this horrifying twilight. Though all the terrors of the night be all around me, still I will celebrate the Light and glorify the dawn.”

Until next time; May you have Peace, Love and Prosperity in your life.

Claudreen Jackson