GUEST POST! One Thought by Katie Bridges

One Thought by Katie Bridges

Take one thought, just one thought, and repeat it all day long. If other thoughts try to come into your mind, shrug them off and focus once again on that one thought. Let that one thought be the filter through which you view everything else in life. If you choose to think about a math equation, see everything around you in terms of that math equation. What is your kitchen table saying to you about that math equation? How can you arrange your food on your dinner plate so that it makes your math equation come to life? How does your TV remind you of your math equation every time you look at it? Make sure you keep your mind on that one thought, even in your sleep.

Now take one interest, just one interest, and repeat it for the rest of your life. If other interests come your way, meld them into your one interest, so that they combine in special ways. Just make sure your one interest always rises up higher than the rest. Let that one interest flavor everything you see and do. Let it direct all your thoughts and activities.

If you do that, you’ll get a feel for what it’s like to have Asperger’s syndrome. Yes, I have exaggerated things a bit. People with Asperger’s syndrome have more than one thought a day and more than one interest in a lifetime. But there is so much repetition going on in the mind of the person with Asperger’s, that it can sometimes be like this.

This “one thought” concept often leads to the development of a special interest in many with Asperger’s syndrome. Imagine thinking about dinosaurs nonstop. After awhile, you’re bound to become an expert in dinosaurs. A special interest is something you’re highly interested in, to the point that it dominates all your conversations and all your thoughts. When you have a special interest, it becomes very difficult to shift your thinking to something else, which can make school quite challenging, as you are expected to think about many different subjects during the course of the day. You add social interactions to that and you’ve got a real challenge on your hands. If you had extra space in your mind for other thoughts, you’d be left wondering how other people manage to think about so many things.

As a person with Asperger’s syndrome, I have a special interest. It developed when I was but a tiny preschooler. Here I am with grandchildren now and it’s still going strong after all these years. I don’t have a specific name for it. It is best described in three terms: Disney theme parks/futuristic cities/pathways. You can sort of see how they go together. Just put me on a pathway in the middle of Tomorrowland at Disney World and I’m happy.

Of those three terms, the pathway is my favorite part. Ever since I was little, I would swoon at the sight of a pathway. Pathways are magical to me. Whenever I step onto a pathway, I have an expectation that it’s going to take me somewhere amazing. I get this idea that if I keep walking along a pathway, it will usher me through a portal leading to a futuristic city. And inside that city is the biggest theme park imaginable.

I look at everything in life through that filter. All the stories I write reflect my special interest. In my novel Warriors of the Edge, you’ll find a pathway leading to a portal that takes you to a futuristic theme park. It’s the one thing I’ve been thinking about all my life.         

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Description

Tarek Ortzen wants what any twelve-year-old kid wants, a day to himself so he can play games in his gaming booth. He gets his chance when he signs up for the role of Stone in the latest war game, Warriors of the Edge. He figures the game will help him escape the real world and its troubles. But after one day of nonstop play, Tarek wishes he'd never heard of Warriors of the Edge. The game has brought nothing but trouble into his life. When the game begins to blur the line between reality and fantasy, Tarek finds himself caught between those who believe in the game and those who oppose it. Is the game trying to warn him of danger or lead him into it? Tarek doesn't know who to believe.
As Tarek's home world faces the threat of destruction, he must determine whether the character he plays can make a difference in their real lives.

 Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Paperback: 324 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse.com (April 20, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1462002692
• ISBN-13: 978-1462002696