I had a brother, and now a nephew that remind me very much of Elliot, and it is scary to contemplate

[IrishAyes]

39. Incredible OP. Thank you.

Wiser heads than mine (not always too hard to find) have suggested that everyone has some degree of mental defect, the only difference being severity. I try to remember that when I get up on my high horse about someone, even if it can only happen after a cooling off period.

One of my dearest friends suffers from depression and schizophrenia. Her mother, now deceased, used to introduce her as her 'evil daughter', although she's done more to earn my respect and affection than most other people in the world. Her illness is severe enough that she sees terrifying images of dangerous animals - snakes curling around someone's head, etc. A tiger prowling the room. But she takes her meds and has worked out a pretty good method of handling the images. If the person on whose head SHE sees a snake, for instance, doesn't seem disturbed by it then she figures it's just her imagination and tries her best to ignore it.

But it must be very trying for her, and I so admire her brave efforts at coping that I tell her now and then of my high regard. Like I said, she's also a very sweet person and really nicer to others than I am.

Thank you again for such an important and illuminating thread.