A concert

Yesterday, our school held its annual spring music concert, and I invited Gulch and his mother to attend. Although I had met Gulch a few times before and thought I had a good understanding of autism, I realized that I had underestimated the situation. As the first chair oboist, I sat on the middle tier of seats, which gave me a clear view of the audience. I noticed my little brother William sitting with Gulch and his mother, and from my perspective, they looked so small, especially Gulch in his white shirt. My classmates and I were nervous as always, hoping that we wouldn’t make any mistakes during the performance.

During the concert, I became even more anxious watching Gulch. I saw him tapping on the front of his chair, standing up, and then sitting back down, while his mother held him tightly. At first, I felt awkward and disappointed, and my focus shifted solely to the music. However, as the performance continued, I began to reflect on the situation and realized that Gulch might not hate music after all. Perhaps, he just did not want to be confined to this large, dark room.

The performance lasted for 1 hour and 30 minutes, and I was so nervous that I felt my socks were wet. After the concert, Gulch and his mother were waiting for me at the door. She apologized a little for any disturbance, but said that it was the first time Gulch had seen such a great concert and that he was interested in the music of the violin. I told her that it was not a problem, and that I wanted Gulch to enjoy more music, although I was not sure how to make it happen.