An autistic child writes an autobiography<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
\"Say it out loud, I'm an autist and I'm proud,\" said Oscar
\nYura Dompas, last Tuesday at a book launching of his own
\nautobiography titled Autistic Journey at QB World Book Plaza
\nSemanggi, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The 25-year-old shared his darkest and brightest moments in
\nhis life after he was diagnosed with brain damage, which later on
\nwas identified as autism, at the age of four.<\/p>\n
Oscar, a student at the English Education Department in
\nAtmajaya Catholic University, said writing a book helped him ease
\nhis mind when expressing his thoughts, which is often difficult
\nfor an autistic person to do.<\/p>\n
\"I love writing and as long as I have a \"healthy\" way of
\nthinking, no matter what my minuses are, I should be proud to
\nshow my skills,\" Oscar said.<\/p>\n
Autism is a severely incapacitating lifelong developmental
\n\"disability\" that typically appears during the first three years
\nof life.<\/p>\n
There is no data available on the number of autistic people in
\nIndonesia, but it is assumed that for every 10,000 births there
\nare 15 to 20 autistic children born.<\/p>\n
However, the word \"disability\" seemed somehow inappropriate to
\ndescribe the achievements that Oscar has made throughout his
\nlife.<\/p>\n
He mastered guitar and bass, joined a basket ball team at his
\nhigh school, learned Australian football, when he was enrolled at
\nthe English Language Center at the Sydney University of
\nTechnology in 1997.<\/p>\n
\"That's why I wrote the book in English, because I am used to
\nwriting in English, thanks to piles of assignments that I had to
\ndo while I was in Aussie,\" the young man said.<\/p>\n
Oscar colored his book with stories of romance, the moments
\nwhen he felt love, and heartbreaks during his teens.<\/p>\n
\"I fell in love for the first time in 1992 ... I knew nothing
\nabout how to have a relationship with her so I kissed her in
\nfront of my friends after school. She was very upset and told her
\nmother,\" he wrote in his book, which was published earlier this
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
Born on April 11, 1980, he has earned praise from
\npsychologists and those who observe autistic behavior.<\/p>\n
\"There was nothing different about Oscar. His academic
\nperformance was perfect. The only thing lacking was the lack of
\neye contact between himself and the people speaking to him,\" said
\nGerda Wanei, Oscar's lecturer at the Atmajaya University.<\/p>\n
Tika Bisono, a psychologist who observes autistic behavior,
\nsaid that Oscar's book would not only inspire other autistic
\npersons to keep improving their capacities, but also would
\npromote awareness among families of autistic patients to organize
\nan ideal companion.<\/p>\n
\"His parents are wonderful. They did a great thing by
\ndistributing duties among themselves and their three children to
\naccompany Oscar. So no one would become too exhausted looking
\nafter him,\" Tika said at the launching. (006)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/an-autistic-child-writes-an-autobiography-1447893297",
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