Prayers Needed

My family has been going through a crisis of sorts
lately. This happens every year right around
Thanksgiving, it seems, but anyway, that is another
story. There is no short version of this story, but I
will sure try.

My cousin has Asperger's. To those who understand
this firsthand, this will explain everything. To
those who don't, well, I don't quite know how to
explain it. It's a form of autism, for starters. My
cousin is a severe Asperger's case. It's a condition
for him that causes him to not know how to interact in
social situations at all. He can't pick up on social
cues. For him, it also means that he has no
eye-hand-foot-whatever coordination. He can't write
his name. He can't tie his shoe. He can't walk up
steps. When you look at my cousin, it is clear that
there is something wrong with him. However, he is
brilliant. He has been reading on a college level
since he was nine. He is now sixteen. He wants to be
a marine biologist and learned to scuba dive over the
summer. That is my cousin in a nutshell.

My cousin has been mainstreamed in school all his
life. He qualifies for and needs a full-time aid, but
the school has never provided one. The administration
refers to him as "the retarded kid" and will not step
in when the other students harrass him. He cannot eat
lunch even because the other students spend the whole
period throwing food at him and pulling his hair. He
cannot defend himself physically because his
disability prevents him from even moving fast enough
to get away from the other kids. The only thing he
has to defend himself is his words, and he frequently
gets himself into trouble by saying things he should
not say. He doesn't know any better. It's part of
his disability. As it happens, his current problem
has stemmed from something another student said and
not him, which is unusual but nonetheless, that is the
situation. Basically, my cousin called a teacher on
an unfair grade, another student made a threatening
remark, and my cousin got suspended.

Fast forward three days, my aunt and uncle go to
school and ask that my cousin finally be given a
full-time aid since he needs one, qualifies for one,
and by law should have one. The school freaks out and
decides (in my opinion) that it would be cheaper to
expell him for being violent. So they do. Fast
forward another two weeks, the school is now taking
him to court to request that he never return to
school. The hearing is on Thursday. He will probably
lose.

Today my uncle (who is a huge asshat) decided to leave
my aunt. These are my cousin's parents. My uncle
decided that he couldn't take the stress and the shame
of the situation any more and so he has left. Now my
uncle is threatening suicide. My cousin needs someone
there to love him and take care of him, and no one is
there. My cousin has also threatened suicide now. I
fear for both of their lives, but especially that of
my cousin. He's a remarkable kid, extremely disabled
mind you, but remarkable.

I don't know what will happen to any of my relatives,
but they could sure use prayers if you've got any to spare.