Response_for_the_Healing_Power_of_Fun

13 years ago, Tom Fields-Meyer needed help understanding and connecting with his recently diagnosed, 4 year old autistic son, Ezra. He was told by doctors and therapists about Dave Rabb, who operated a storefront children’s gym. Dave believed that a person’s ability to make genuine, caring human connections was what mattered most and he did so with a Brooklyn accent and attitude to match. He facilitated parents to not be troubled or intimidated by their children; he contributed them tools to appreciate their children and to notice the things that make them delightful every single day. I enjoyed reading Tom Fields-Meyer’s essay “The Healing Power of Fun” about his experience with Dave Rabb. Without difficulty I could see how he would be overwhelmed with a diagnosis of autism with his toddler son; in what manner he would be anxious to find someone to help him figure out how to interact and connect with his son, Ezra. I felt I could have been sitting with Tom speaking about a shared friend for the reason that I have known individuals like Dave. I can picture his calm, take charge attitude. He would remain steady and dependable for not only the children but the parents as well. Dave had no advance degrees and learned his people skills from the streets of Brooklyn’s Sea Gate neighborhood. He was a one-time drill instructor who “playfully shouted commands at kids and routinely cracked off-color jokes for the entertainment of the parents on the sidelines”. His directions—“firm, direct and precise” helped to guide children through obstacles courses consisting “of ramps, ladders and slides”, with “pads and ladders that looked like they dated back to the Ford administration”. When Ezra’s therapists talked about “proprioceptive input and sensory integration”, Dave would have the kids “lie on the floor, roll a giant, inflatable hot dog over their bodies, and watch them giggle.” He contributed to parents the ability and awareness to know their children and connect with them at a level that the children would comprehend as well. From Dave, Ezra learned motor skills and gymnastics techniques and something the therapists and educators left by the wayside: carefree, silly fun. The children could let go and delight in accomplishments themselves within the watchful direction of the parent and the parent can pay attention to and observe their children learn, mature and experience being silly. Dave said “What I’ve tried to do is give parents the tools to appreciate their kids, to notice the same things that knock me out every day, watching them.” These moments of fun with the parent and child can be looked back on later as gratifying learning stages together. They make stronger the bond that the parent and child have, building trust and teaching them both about each other. When Tom is asked about who has been the most helpful in raising Ezra, who’s now 17, he says “What matters isn’t the degree or the title but the person’s ability to make a genuine, caring human connection.” Work Cited Tom Fields-Meyer, “The Healing Power of Fun.” Los Angeles Times, 7 February 2013