My Hero *Autism Blog Special*

Hey guys. I'm going to share with you a Manuscript Speech I made about my younger brother Nicky. It's a pretty long read because I did this as an assignment for my Public Speaking II class where we had to write a speech about our hero. I chose Nicky. Since there are only a few editions left to write for this blog (including the crossover blog sometime later today hopefully) I decided I should write and post the remaining Autism posts this week before I go back to college on Friday because this is my last free week before doing classwork.I'll make sure I don't tag the same person twice for the remaining blogs because I don't want my posts to invade someone's profile, rofl!! If I don't tag you for each blog, I'll post on my status when I completed another edition if you want to read it.

Here's the speech:

Manuscript Speech My Hero by AJ O’Hagan

There are plenty of people who I really admire, respect, and adore. They stand out because of their athletic ability, character traits, and talented abilities. I look up to many family members, athletes, friends, and mentors. However, there is one person that stands out above the others. His kindness is unmatched; he always smiles, and has a unique point of view. That person is my younger brother Nicky. Nicky is my hero.

When Nicky was a toddler, he was diagnosed with Autism. Because of the Autism and the symptoms that add up to it, Nicky would be different from other people. His speaking skills may not be as fluent; his social skills may not be as sharp as others and he may not experience the social struggles and pleasures that a common teenager goes through.The one good thing that has resulted in this struggle is that Nicky does not care that he is different. In fact, he probably doesn’t even know that he is different from the rest of the world. Whenever he is happy, he flaps his ears with his hands and opens his mouth for a wide smile.

Nicky and I have a lot in common. We were both diagnosed with autism at a young age. We went to the same school during our respective preschool years and had the same teachers. One major thing we have in common is that we both love Power Rangers. We watch plenty of Power Ranger episodes on YouTube. We also join forces and tape them whenever they are on TV. He and I also team up to mimic the characters and make fun of them whether its power Rangers or any other show or video game we watch or play. During this past summer, while I was babysitting my hero, I opened the refrigerator and took out a Hawaiian Punch. I tried to open the 20 ounce bottle, but I couldn’t twist it open. The cap was too tight. Nicky watched as I struggled. I gave up, put the bottle back in the fridge and went into my room, still thirsty. About a ½ hour later, Nicky comes into the room with a smile on his face. “AJ, why don’t you try and open the Hawaiian Punch?” he asked. I thought that if I couldn’t open it a ½ earlier, what are the chances of me doing it now? I didn’t do enough pushups. It was worth a shot! I went into the kitchen, got the bottle of Hawaiian Punch out and tried to open it again. The cap just twisted off with barely a flick of the wrist. Not only was the bottle not tight, it was really loose. I turned around and saw my brother flicking his ears and giggling. I figured out what happened. Nicky took the bottle out of the fridge while I was in my room, was able to get the bottle open and wanted to surprise and trick me at the same time. Upon discovering the truth Nicky and I laughed for two full minutes. I wasn’t thirsty anymore.

My brother loves animals. He loves dogs, cats, and all different kinds of pets. When our two cats lick him, he giggles and tells our whole family. One day, Nicky informed me to pet one of our cats on the lower back by her tail. I followed his directions but as I was doing it, our cat turned around and tried to bite me. With my hand barely surviving, I noticed Nicky was laughing at me. My mom then explained that the cat doesn’t like to be touched from the lower back on. Nicky pulled a practical joke on me.All jokes aside, Nicky really misses me when I am up in college. He always counts down the days until I return home for the holidays. Last year, when I came home for Thanksgiving break, I entered in my room which I shared with Nicky and my other younger brother Stephen. At the foot of the door, I noticed a whole bunch of Disney Character toys lined up next to each other towards me and a sign in front of them saying “Welcome Home AJ!” People with autism usually have a talent or obsession they are really good in. For my brother, his obsession is movies. He is not only obsessed with the movies themselves, he also is obsessed with knowing what year the movie was made, the company, the producers, the actors, etc. He loves Disney movies, Warner Brother Movies, and most of all, he loves M.G.M movies. He is a big fan of MGM and Samuel Goldwyn Company. About ten years ago, when we lived in Long Island, Nicky and I used to watch a movie called Aladdin and the Magic Lamp. According to Nicky, Aladdin and the Magic Lamp was created in 1983 by the Samuel Goldwyn Company, starring the voices of Christopher Atkins, Kristy McNichol, John Carradine, June Lockhart and it aired on AMC. Unfortunately when we moved to the Bronx in the year 2000, we lost the tape. To this day, he tells me our memory in his own unique way. “AJ, I miss old Aladdin and the Magic Lamp 1983 on VHS by Samuel Goldwyn Company on AMC, American Movie Classics.” About seven months ago, we found the main theme music for the movie called “Angel’s Flight” on YouTube. Thanks to that video, we actually found out that the whole movie will be uploaded on YouTube sometime this month so the Nostalgia will come full circle. Nicky was very happy to hear that. Since Nicky watches so many movies about the protagonist having a girlfriend and getting married, that is also his dream. Just like in the movies, he would like to have a girlfriend too. Whenever we go out in public and we meet friends of the family, Nicky would often ask the ladies we know their name and how old they are. The girl must be around his age otherwise he doesn’t want to have her as a girlfriend. The girls think he is adorable. I try to take notes and learn from Nicky about the mystery of pursuing a relationship.Nicky also has many talents. He is extremely good at fishing. He can cast out and reel in all by himself. Every year when we go up to Pennsylvania during the week of 4th of July, we go fishing. My cousin, my brother Stephen, and I fish with Nicky. Nicky usually catches the most fish and he loves to throw them back in the lake when he is done. Nicky also loves to play video games. He and I spent a lot of time over the years playing the Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog series. His skills have surpassed mine as an old school video game legend. He always beats me in two player combat. It’s such an honor that he enjoys the same stuff that I do.Another great talent Nicky has is art. He is a great artist. He can draw really well by hand and is just as good at drawing on the computer. He often draws parody pictures of his favorite shows, video games, and characters. He also draws some comic strips and parodies of our family and pets. Nicky has a great sense of humor. Usually on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, it is Nicky who creates the cards by drawing and writing on it. He gives it to our Mom and Dad in celebration of their respective holidays. The cards are creatively done because he puts so much heart, effort, and love into it.

Nicky is one of the nicest people I know. He always smiles and says hi to everyone, even if they are strangers. He loves to get to know people. I try to follow in his footsteps and do the same exact thing myself. Nicky is 16 years old. He is just like a big kid. He may never experience having a girlfriend or what college life is like but there are plenty of things my brother can enjoy. He can be a kid all his life. He doesn’t have to worry about the stress of work, deadlines, or complicated H.W. He can focus on doing the things he does best: Being a good kid with a big heart. In this coming spring, Nicky, Stephen, and I are going to be uncles for the first time. My sister Fallon broke the news to everyone that she is going to be a mother. One thing that still scares me is that my mom is going to be a grandma. Fallon told all of us by calling us on our phones. She purposely told us not to tell Nicky because she wanted to tell him the news to his face because she wanted to see his surprised facial expressions that only he can perform. When my sister has the baby, hopefully our nephew or niece will realize in the years to come that Uncle Nicky is a hero.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1102869544785&ref=nf