I painted the watercolors below based on photos I took during my last visit to see Mike (note – be aware that there may be triggers in this post. I was very emotional at the time), which was two years ago. Mom was still alive and Dave, my younger brother was able to attend as well. […]
Every year that my parents were well, we would arrange to meet at Mike‘s group home for a birthday party. It was fun and the other residents really enjoyed it, as did we all. The photos below are from his birthday in 1992. Mom and Dad were still around and vigorous. You’ll find my post […]
The photographs below have not been posted before in my blog. I was looking though my photo archives and found some photographs that show more about the relationship between my brother Mike and our father. Mike is older than me, autistic, low functioning and non verbal. When I took these photos, Mike was living in […]
Dad was like Cool Hand Luke, he never gave up no matter what the feedback was from Mike. Mike is my older brother, autistic, low functioning and nonverbal. Originally posted on February 24, 2013, Those Moments: This moment was a real treat for me, not such a terrific photo, but a great moment: Originally posted on […]
I would often meet my parents at Mike’s group home when we used to visit. Below are some pictures that show their interactions with Mike*. From June 24, 2013 (Private Moment): The first photo depicts the isolation that was the rule rather than the exception. Mom was very sensitive about this, and thought it was […]
Today’s watercolor experiment: I have an obsession about the past. In part, it has to do with my desire to go back in time to try and fix things. My older brother Mike has a lot to do with that. He is autistic, low functioning and nonverbal. I have never been able to communicate with […]
I seem to be surrounded by broken things, things that are incomplete. Mom died just over a month ago, not more than two weeks after her 90th birthday. Many cousins I hadn’t seen in a while came to her party. We all had a great time. I traveled from California to New Jersey to be […]
Most of you who have read my blog within the past month or so know that Mom passed away on February 20. My posts have concentrated on the events related to Mom: her 90th birthday party; her trouble getting around the house; my return visit after she was admitted to the hospital and wasn’t doing well. […]
Ok, not as bad as that, but I left my computer at my Mom’s apartment. Mom died last week and my brother Dave and I were there today trying to get it together enough to move out by the end of the month. We had planned for the computer to be the repository for an organized (photographic) […]
An article in today’s New York Times about the plans to close the Brooklyn Developmental Center (BDC) in New York City sparked some memories in me. My brother Mike is autistic, nonverbal and low functioning. I visited him at the BDC when he was an inmate there. Inmate seems such a harsh word, but it was a fitting term in the era […]
