Denise kisses her grandson on the cheek as he walks through her front door. "Hi Brodie!" she says. Her husband Jim smiles at the boy, "Hey Buzz!" 

Brodie doesn't return his grandparents' greetings; he's far more interested in looking at my video camera.

"How ya doing?" I ask, as Brodie stares into the lens. The seven year old doesn't answer me either.

"He wasn't able to speak," Jim recalls how they first realized something was different about his grandson. "He just couldn't talk."

Brodie was eventually diagnosed with autism. "I just wish for so much for Brodie," Denise says, fighting back tears. "It's just hard seeing him struggle."

Denise and Jim tried engaging Brodie with all sorts of activities. Nothing really connected until six months ago when they started noticing how Brodie noticed moving fabric. They borrowed a friend's flag.

"He was just mesmerized by this German flag," Jim says. "We stuck it on a broom pole," Denise explains. "And waved it around the backyard." They show me a couple photographs from that day; Brodie can't stop beaming.

"It just sort of snowballed from there," Denise says.

Now Brodie visits his grandparents' house a few times a week. The boy beelines from the front door to the back door.

In the backyard, he helps his grandpa grab almost two dozen flags from the shed before putting them up along the fence.

"It reminds me of when the Queen's [in residence] in London," Denise smiles. "Everybody on the street knows," Jim explains. "When Brodie's visiting grandpa and grandma, the flags are up in the backyard!"

Brodie's hands start moving up and down as Jim covers the entire length of the fence with flags. They were bought on vacation, donated by friends, and collected from people in their community who simply wanted to help a boy feel his best.

Brodie smiles as he makes appreciative sounds, trying to say the names of the provinces, countries, and sports teams depicted on the flags.

Once the flags have been put in the exact spots their grandson wants them, Jim will grab a couple chairs and Denise will unwrap an ice cream sandwich. They will sit with Brodie and share the treat while he appreciates his flags.

"The more the flags blow, " Jim says. "The faster [his] hands will go!"

On a warm windy day, they can spend hours watching the flags together. As Brodie's hands shake with enthusiasm, Jim will dream of how he can help his grandson earn the Guinness record for world's largest flag collection.

Denise will watch with gratitude. "I just want so much for Brodie," she cries. "This is one way we can make him happy."

"This is where he's allowed to be somebody that he's not normally," Jim says. "He gets to have some fun and laugh!"

Jim starts tickling his grandson. Brodie bursts out laughing. The boy who started out not saying a word, won't stop expressing his joy.