Tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day. If you know anyone impacted by this disorder, send them a text or something letting them know you're thinking about them. They will appreciate it.

My cousin has autism. He will be graduating from Frankfort High School in June and will be off to college!

5 hours ago, PP1 said:

Tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day. If you know anyone impacted by this disorder, send them a text or something letting them know you're thinking about them. They will appreciate it.

I have a question PP1.  I walk around my neighborhood a lot and a new family moved in and I met one of the new neighbors.  He is about 20 give or take and he immediately friended me as I walked by and started walking with me and such.  Told me he was autistic and told me one thing that was important in his life (which I will be sure to bring up when I see him again) but beyond that how I can best be his friend and/or be the best I can be when I see him?  I assume he is just going to start walking with me again as I exercise so it may be more than just hello how are you today.  Any advice is appreciated. 

Just treat him as normal as possible. He may not understand social cues, like nodding, sarcasm, or, surprisingly, pointing as things. Just be as clear as can be. If he is higher functioning, he may try to use gestures or colloquialisms he has recently learned and this can lead to very pleasant and funny interactions. Even though he is 20, still get to know his parents, they are probably still very worried about him meeting new people. 

Here is a picture of David last week at Newport Aquarium on a field trip. He loves the water.

   

On 4/1/2024 at 4:22 PM, PP1 said:

Just treat him as normal as possible. He may not understand social cues, like nodding, sarcasm, or, surprisingly, pointing as things. Just be as clear as can be. If he is higher functioning, he may try to use gestures or colloquialisms he has recently learned and this can lead to very pleasant and funny interactions. Even though he is 20, still get to know his parents, they are probably still very worried about him meeting new people. 

I talked to my friend again a couple of days ago (and have a few times over the past year) but this time it was him walking by my crib!  On a couple of occasions I did get to speak to his dad briefly (and made the connection that I worked with a relative of his in the past) and told him who I was, where I lived, and that his son has taken an interest in me.

I am finding out he is really smart and has extensive knowledge in some areas including all kinds of animals, zoos, treatment of animals, etc. so we have had some nice conversations.  I wanted to update you and thank you for the advice.