Dancing with Max by Emily Colson is an intimate look at what it means to raise a child with autism, alone. Emily’s dance partner, Max, is Chuck Colson’s grandson. He’s now 31 and spreads love through art. 

The pandemic was incredibly difficult for people like Emily and Max, who lost their support structures. But Max took to painting colorful hearts on posters and hanging them around town. Pretty soon, Max’s hearts were put on notecards, which have sold by the tens of thousands, with the proceeds going to charity. 

Writing at World Opinions, Jennifer Marshall Patterson described this mother-and-son dancing duos latest project: infant onesies featuring one of Max’s hearts and the word “Loved” printed by a company that hires only employees with autism. For each onesie sold, Emily and Max donate another to a life-affirming charity. 

It’s more than a way to pass the time until things return to normal. As Patterson observed, Emily and Max have shown that hope and encouragement “can be contagious in their own right.”