Stapleton parents Dana and Bryan Phillips have a five year old boy who is similar to most Stapleton five year olds. Max enjoys playing at the park, going to the pool, and spending time with his friends. When Max is with his Stapleton friends, you almost can’t tell the one area in which Max is completely different than his buddies in the neighborhood. Max is not the best at everything he does. “We love Max so much,” said Dana. “He is good at a lot of things, but we know he is not the best at everything. I know that is a weird thing for a Stapleton parent to say, but we know it’s true, and we have to be honest with ourselves.”
Parents of Max’s friends have noticed how different Max is. “It’s not something that jumps out at you necessarily,” said parent Jill Lembeck. “But when you talk to his parents, it’s really pronounced. I’ll be talking about how good my son is at everything and how he is great, or the best, at everything he does. Then, Dana will let me know that Max isn’t the best at something. Poor girl. I really feel for her.” Other area parents also sympathize for the Phillips family. “I can’t imagine what they have to go through every day,” said Kari Hopkins. “I mean she has to use terms like, ‘pretty good,’ and ‘alright’ when describing her son. We, and almost all of Stapleton parents, use terms such as ‘the greatest,’ ‘unbelievable,’ or ‘amazing.’ Should we have some sort of charity run for Max, or something?” The Phillips family seems to be very comfortable with Max’s affliction, and have adjusted to it well. “We’re just taking it one day at a time,” said Bryan. “Really, it hasn’t been that big of a deal. We love Max and know he is a great kid. For us, it’s not that important that he is the best at everything he does. He’ll find his way.” We hope so, Bryan. We sure hope so.