It was July 2010 and I was unemployed for two months and went to take an exam for assistance through Michigan Rehabilitation. It was on that day that I learned that I was High Functioning Autistic. The diagnoses was a huge relief because it answered a ton of questions, memories and experiences I had the first 22 years of my personal life. It also brought back memories of the struggles I had keeping up with people in class, dealing with bullies, name calling, hatred, and even teachers who would loose their cool with me in public classrooms. I had relief to know that I was not intellectually “stupid” as many would call me, or a “retard”. About five years before that it was my senior year in high school, and I made a decision to “succeed” and work hard to achieve something. I earned a 4.0 grade point average for the first time ever! It meant a lot deep down. That same year I began listening to music and realized that it was a huge passion and not just playing video games thinking it was the only skill I had. I wrote and produced this song to simply say have a voice and identity. Be yourself and it will set you free no matter what disability you have, or how people act toward you.
