I am in Connecticut for the weekend visiting friends, just a mile from the Quinnipiac River (I may go drink from it for luck). Yesterday we spent the day with the kids at Lake Compounce Amusement Park.
It was apparently Autism Awareness Day at the park and I spent some time talking to some of the volunteers (mostly parents). On the giant swing ride there was an aduly with autism that literally spent hours on the ride. Each time it started up he started grinning, rocking and making a loud rhythmic sound in his throat. It was a bit of a spectacle, but no one expressed disgust or anger. Instead, everyone seemed amused and interested. Here was a 45 year old man riding a ride for hours, expresing the sort of joy that we all feel when doing something we love. The difference is that we all filter our joy on the way out to the point of social acceptability.
In some ways, I am jealous of that man’s ability to take such pure joy out of life.