James has always been precise, from the time he put his toy cars in a certain order and told me all their names, to today and how he can tell you in the greatest of detail, how exactly the workings of the robot he built at school is so much better than the one that was on Robot Wars last week!
He was diagnosed with Aspergers at 9 years old after a difficult time at primary school, where he was constantly being goaded by other children into doing things that got him into bother with the teachers.
I was told that it was "his behaviour and lack of respect when being told what to do" that was the problem, but I knew the main problem wasn't his....it was the school's. After much soul searching, I moved him to another school where I'd seen first hand how they dealt with children who were more "challenging".. after all, I was a trainee Teaching Assistant at the time.
Within weeks, James was a settled, happy boy making progress and being observed by a multi agency group of experts in child behaviours.
When I got the letter with his diagnosis, on Dec 21st that year, it was the best Christmas gift I could ever have, proof that my boy wasn't "the naughty one" that he'd been labelled beforehand.
Since then, James has grown into an amazing young man of whom I'm so proud, he has embraced his quirks and his alternative views of things often make me think about how I go through my days.
I never want him to be held back by his so-called hidden disability, I want him to continue his journey with inspiring experiences along the way and show everyone he meets his beautiful soul.
To send him on this trip to Tanzania would give him amazing memories of building communities, making friends and help other children into education, something that will be in his heart forever. As a single parent, I hope that he inspires others, both with and without Aspergers, never to be held back by what others see as limitations, but to embrace the challenges ahead with positivity.
Thank you, Vickie.