I Have Asperger's

I went to an awards breakfast today.  (I didn't win, but I was nominated.  This nomination earned me a free pass to a flower and garden show.)  Everyone was so nice to me there.  They knew I had Aspergers, so they seated me close to a door so I had less of a chance of feeling overwhelmed in a crowd of over 200 people.  It really helped.  I still ended up using my sunglasses to feel less anxious, and ear plugs to lessen the noise. 

Anyways, the breakfast was nice, and when it was over, I got to see the gardens.  But I think my favorite part WASN'T the gardens.  It was a special meadow/field that they had.  It was so empty and open and quiet.  SO quiet.  I remember walking through that field, and I was the ONLY one there.  All around me was grass, and trees in the distance.  At one point, I just stopped smack dab in the middle of it all, and looked around soaking it up.  No cars, no people, no evidence of major civilization.  There was a groundhog that ran by, a few birds flew around me, and that was about it.  A thought crossed my mind: "Is this EARTH?"  It seems like a silly question, but if you think about it you'll understand why I would ask that to myself.  I've grown up, without EVER having gone camping, or anywhere by myself in the middle of nothing.  No litter, no electricity, no pollution, no noise.  And when you have Aspergers, this all plays a BIG role in life.  You can smell the pollution, you can hear everything.  I've NEVER heard anything that quiet in my entire life.

It's funny, because I'm not a HUGE nature person, not that I have anything against it, I'm just not THAT into it.  But that meadow was the most beautiful place I have ever been.  (Minus the goose poo in the grass!)