Here's an incident that demonstrates how my nephew thinks, a story that can tell us something about the autistic mindset. My sister didn't feel well the other day while they were at our house, and she ran to the bathroom to throw up, but she didn't make it and puked just outside the bathroom. Sorry for the disgusting part - I don't mean to make readers feel sick, it's just important for the story. My nephew seemed like he doesn't understand how this can happen. First of all, he has never seen his mother throw up, and secondly, he knows that when people feel sick they should go to the bathroom. He was confused and didn't understand how she couldn't control herself. Also, he asked her "do you still don't want me to feel uncomfortable?" as if to check if her attitude hasn't changed, if she's still the same person despite the fact that she is now in a different situation from what he's used to. Last week, he asked a similar question when he first came to their apartment after a new air-conditioner was installed, and asked whether it was still the same home.

On the other hand, after my sister puked he said that he wants to hug her and seemed concerned. Empathy from an autistic kid. That's really remarkable.