An excerpt from Giaci and Me: A Mother’s Journey of Loving and Raising an Autistic Child. —— After our hilarious Sunday service, we arrived home just as the phone rang. It was Mom calling to tell me about a religious retreat organized by the Italian church. “There is a religious retreat, and I’d like you and Giaci to come,” Mom said in Italian. She wanted me to bring Giaci because she felt that a special blessing would help him recover from his delays.