Who Are You?

Just before Christmas Neil had some friends over, most of whom he hadn't seen since early fall or summer. In order to prepare himself to recognize his guests, we got out the yearbook and started practicing. I'd show him a picture and cover the name. He'd tell me who it was. It was tougher than you'd think. He usually had to guess several names before he got it right. Even when I showed him his own picture, he thought it was his friend, Mike.

When party-time came, he actually didn't do too badly. It really helped when he could hear their voices and see familiar mannerisms. Even now, we occasionally run into his friends at Burger King or somewhere and it takes a minute for him to put all the elements together and recognize who they are.

An astute occupational therapist tested his ability to see contrast the other day and found that Neil has a real deficit in that area. That may mean he finds it hard to determine features on a face and could explain the whole "who are you?" problem. We'll be seeing the optometrist again in a couple of weeks and see what he has to say.

In the mean time, it wouldn't hurt to tell Neil who you are when you see him next time, or refer to something that will help him identify you. Oh, and please don't be offended if he doesn't know you right away. If you were a part of his life before, you're still a part of his life now. And thanks for being there.