A special needs mother's necklace

Last Monday at the Parent's Autism Conference at Carmen B. Pingree, there was a booth packed with all sorts of gear to advocate for autism. I couldn't help myself and I bought a water bottle, car magnet, window cling and a tiny, size 4T t-shirt with saying: "Kids with Autism Rock!"

This also got me thinking, while I am an advocate for many causes like autism, epilepsy and rare disease, what I really am is a mother-advocate for Bertrand Thomas Might--my beautiful, strong, charming, determined, warrior son. What I really wanted was something I could wear daily to make others aware of Bertrand's challenges and his indomitable spirit.

So, I contacted the kind and patient Shannon Schoon, proprietress of Peace of Mind Jewelry. She had created a special necklace for the Global Genes Project, an initiative to promote rare disease awareness, and she created the mother's necklace pictured above specifically for me.

• The spectrum of colored stones and puzzle piece charm profess autism awareness.
• The purple stone and ribbon charm profess epilepsy awareness.
• The blue stone (also B's birthstone) and the rare charm profess rare disease awareness.

Bertrand's name charm is the largest and stands alone because he is most important. Bertrand is not defined by his symptoms, but they are a part of him. I love Bertrand not in spite of them but because he is my son. And no matter what (and thanks to my lovely new conversation piece) I will continue to advocate for him and the other children out there facing similar challenges.