Meet Jason, a child with severe special needs. Jason is a young boy who spends his whole life sitting in a wheelchair and hitting words. If that sounds like a depressing life, it is. Jason wants so badly to just live like a normal boy. Being paralyzed in a wheelchair and the inability to talk makes Jason 's life all that much harder. Then, he meets Catherine, a girl who just can 't stop staring at him in the Occupational Therapy office. Rules by Cynthia Lord, teaches a valuable lesson that people are not always as they appear to be. Catherine, a twelve year old girl, is having a pretty depressing summer. She doesn 't go to camp and is stuck going to OT everyday with her autistic brother, David. Sitting in a OT office is very boring and depressing for Catherine. She has nothing to do besides draw in her sketchbook and have Harry Potter books read to her. One day, she notices Jason Morehouse, a boy her age, who is confined to a wheelchair. This catches Catherine 's attention and she can 't help but stare. She thinks: “Maybe by drawing Jason, I could look at him easier” (Lord,18). …show more content…
Because Jason is unable to talk, he uses a book of word cards to help him communicate with others. By making Jason word cards, it’s Catherines way of showing him “I’m sorry for not-looking at him the same embarrassed way I hate people not-looking at David” This is how Catherine’s friendship grows with Jason. Catherine tries to communicate with Jason using the word cards but, she feels he is missing many key words. She asks Mrs. Morehouse if she can make Jason some more “words”. Catherine struggles to find the perfect words to make for Jason fearing she will leave essential words to have as a child. Cynthia Lord then leads us on a rather unexciting tour of Catherine 's bedroom while Catherine is busy contemplating which words to make for Jason. She first chooses the word guinea pig to add to Jason 's book of words. Because obviously, that word is very important to Jason 's