A MOTHER'S STORY OF GRIEF, SURVIVAL, HUMOR, AND GRACE. Parenting a child with a disability can be isolating and devastating. We want so much to do everything for our children, but what do you do when nothing works? Worse, what do you do when your child is diagnosed with a permanent, incurable disability? In The Gift of Autism, author Mary Sharp, a family practice doctor and mother of three, candidly shares her defeats and victories in handling her son's battle with autism. After shock, denial, despair, and bitterness, Mary has found room in her heart for laughter and grief to coexist. Even more, she has come to see her son Nic as a gift in her family's life.