washing hands

For several weeks now when Calvin gets off of the school bus from kindergarten we help him out of his hybrid stroller-wheelchair. We assist him up the deck steps and into the house. We proceed into the bathroom where we practice washing hands. Sometimes Calvin is hesitant when asked to do new things and it takes a long time for him to learn new skills (which is an utterly gross understatement.) So at first Calvin would retracted his hands when we held them under the tepid water. But yesterday, after weeks of practice, Calvin put his hands under the faucet all by himself and touched his fingers together as in washing. I was so proud of him. When I stop to think of it, however, I realize I am proud of everything that Calvin accomplishes in any given day. It is his fighting spirit in the face of seemingly insurmountable impediments that he succeeds.