My upcoming visit to see my mother and my two brothers is on my mind these days. My visit to New Jersey is coming up in less than a week. I’ll be staying with Mom, and we’ll visit little bro in northern Jersey. All of us will drive out to see my older brother in his group home. Actually, he was transferred to a geriatric facility because he was having trouble getting around on his own. He kept bumping into things and falling. I liked visiting him in his group home, as much as anyone can enjoy controlled chaos. His housemates were interesting to talk to.

Younger brother

I speak mainly about my older brother, Michael, because his autism, low-functioning status and inability to speak, has had a lasting impact on me. Little brother does not remember much about Mike from childhood days. He is quite a bit younger than Mike, and Mike went to live at Willowbrook, an institution on Staten Island early in his life. Although he doesn’t remember much, he does remember being scared of Mike. I understand this. Mike used to make a lot of noise at times and would hit himself and bite his hand when he was frustrated, which was quite often, in fact. I don’t know why I wasn’t scared. Maybe because I was older. Mom said that Mike tried to scratch us at times. I don’t remember this. Perhaps that is what my younger brother remembers.

My younger brother doesn’t like to talk about Mike too much (I suppose that I make up for that by talking about him nonstop). Each of us reacts to our environment differently. I hope that during our reunion, I can get some insight as to my other brother feels. I welcome different perspectives and little brother’s perspective is most welcome and anticipated.