Oldest son's college homework

[bodybuilder1958]

My oldest son is autistic, asperger's syndrome, he's academically brilliant and socially inept and that's the whole truth. He's in college going for his associate's degree in machining technology.

Yesterday he had a paper to do in his 'Communications' class. It's an online class and I figured that it would be easier for him to do communications online rather than try to get him to actually participate in a classroom setting. See he has a hard time fitting into the subject matter, he was in his late teens before he actually chimmed in to a conversation that my husband and I was having. I remember that day like it was yesterday because it startled us. It was like 'wow, Josh, you actually added to the conversation'. Since then he's joined several conversations but usually his conversations are one he starts which is fine, he's a pleasure to be around. But when it comes to body language he just has absolutely no clue, he doesn't get it, hence last night's homework.

But Josh comes out to me last night complaining about a paper he has to write in his communications class on 'Non-verbal Communications'. His actual words were: "Mom, it's non-verbal communications, and I have to watch a movie clip about a transgender and crossdressing". Well that got my attention and when he told me the title of the movie I had to stifle a laugh. The movie clip he had to watch had Robin Williams in it, the movie, 'Mrs Doubtfire'.

Too funny, my very religious, non-swearing oldest son was to watch a movie about a cross-dresser. Well I love that movie but I could understand why Josh would have a problem with it, he's never seen the movie and I needed to explain it to him. I told him a bit about the movie and then after a moment of prayer I had the answer (yes I stopped and prayed for a moment for guidance and the Lord very quickly answered the prayer and it worked, 100%) . Josh, why don't we read some essays that other people have written on the same subject. Sure enough I found over 200 essays on the same identical subject, I had him read two of them and within 20 minutes he was typing away and about 30 minutes after that he was done.

Then I told my husband about it. My husband immediately said that I was making it up. That too was funny, my husband doesn't have a clue about the classes in college that make you analyze such things. Non-verbal communication, the movie Mrs. Doubtfire, explain that.... I even dreamed about this last night, Joshua's body language to having to watch such a movie (about 15 minutes of it) and the real killer, at the end of the clip Robin Williams flipped the bird at his ex-wife's boyfriend. I thought my son was going to die when he saw that. His words about that gesture: "Mom, I don't have to explain what that finger means do I?"

Oh well, I thought it was funny,
Bodybuilder1958