I went to see Older Son on Saturday with my mother and sister in tow. In the space of one month, he's gone from looking like an overgrown toddler to looking like a seven-year-old boy. Autistic kids are pretty utilitarian in their view of people, and my O.S. is no exception. He smiled and ran over to me when we arrived. I handed him a new toy bus, which immediately got his full attention. He then took my hand and said, "french fries!" when I asked what he wanted. No showing anybody around the place -- McDonald's beckoned. We had fun there, then went back to the dorm. O.S. was teary about going back, but he led me by the hand right back to his dorm area. He then requested a Blue's Clues video in his VCR. I noticed that the weekend trainer referred to him simply as "T" and not by his full name -- a sign to me that he's got everybody charmed. There must be an intangible charming quality that some people possess and most of us don't. I had a roommate in law school who got away with all manner of things, yet everybody loved the guy, including me. My O.S. has the same ability to charm that my old roommate has. Kind of scary when you think about it.