My Son Taught Me Real Love, Patience, and Compassion

My name is Antreneciya Brantley, and I am a mother to a terrific 12 year old with Down Syndrome, name Qylan Brantley. When I was about 5 months pregnant I found out that my son would have Down Syndrome, but I did not know the severity of it until he was actually born. It was a rough next four months for me because I didn't know what to expect. With faith and God on my side I believed that He wouldn't put more on me than I could bare. On June 3, 2006, I gave birth to a 7lb 13 oz. baby boy, and when I looked at him, I knew he was just perfect for me. The first year of his life was pretty easy. He crawled and was pulling up on things at the age of 7 months. I thought he would be okay, but the challenge came when he didn't walk until he was about a month shy of his 2nd birthday. I put him in therapy, both physical and occupational to help with his speech. It helped a little but we learn that he would have a speech delay and would not be able to keep up with the regular kids. I chose to keep him around regular children because I knew that would help his development more. He often mimic what he saw and heard. In kindergarten I put him in a regular class with the help of the Special Needs unit. He was learning, but at his own pace. It wasn't enough for him to comfortably move on to the next grade. I made the decision to hold him back and do kindergarten another year. He went to a new school, and that school and the teacher was the best decision that I could have made for him. He is now in middle school in the 6th grade. Although, he learns slower than others, at his own pace, and that is fast enough for me. As a single mother it has been rough, but I thank God everyday for putting Qylan in my life. He has shown me what real love feels like, and taught me both patience and compassion. I am forever grateful to God, my family, my friends, my pastor and my church, because without them I don't know where we would be. I ask everyone that we come in contact with to not treat him with a disability, but treat him with the ability to know he can do anything he sets his mind to. Today, Qylan is a fully functioning preteen and he also loves to dance. He is a member of the mime team at our church and he loves it, because he feels like he is a part of something big!

In the words of Qylan himself, "I'm the MAN!"