Taylor Crowe, Autism from the inside

About Me

   Hello there! My name is Taylor Crowe. I am currently twenty-five years old. I am autistic, which makes learning harder for me than most other people in many ways. It makes it hard for me to interact with people because I don’t know what to say or do in many situations. It is very easy to misunderstand things. Autism is a very difficult disability to have, but when the doctor who diagnosed me said that I would “never” be able to do this or that in my lifetime, my father knew right away that that wasn’t true. My mom had doubts about it also. My family always had faith in me. They thought that if I had occupational therapy, language therapy and other similar treatments, I would someday become my own man! My family worked hard to get me help, and it paid off!
   The way I see it, the only way I’m different from other people is that it sometimes takes me longer to learn things. For instance, a four year-old cannot drive a car, but (s)he will probably learn how to do it in a little over a decade when (s)he is older. This proves that in the future I’ll probably learn a lot more about independence than I know right now; it’s just a matter of time. It just takes a little longer for me. I have to work hard at it. By the way, I have my driver's license.
   Change is difficult for somebody with autism. My parents got a divorce when I was only eight years old. Thus, my parents’ love for me outlasted that for each other. Because of this, I had to go back and forth between their houses, which got annoying and tiring, especially because sometimes I forgot something I was supposed to bring to other house. I had to learn to be responsible. Divorce was probably harder for me than my non-autistic younger brother, but I adapted. I eventually learned to find the good things in my situation. Adapting and working hard are two things I’ve done a lot in my life.
   As I was growing up, my family helped children my age learn how to be friends with me. Having friends throughout my school years was a wonderful thing and made a big difference in my life.
Taylor Crowe

My family also discovered that I was really interested in art, and worked hard to help me develop my skills. I went to special art classes, summer schools and even had art tutors sometimes. All this led to me being at the college where I am now; CalArts in Valencia, California, learning to become a professional animator and cartoonist. And since I am doing very well in college, I know that someday I can have a successful job and eventually live on my own.
I have friends. I’m doing the things in life that I want to do. Things aren’t always easy for me. Sometimes I still misunderstand things and get confused, but I’m still working hard and adapting. I’m having a good time. Life is great.