Hi,

When I'm told something is going to happen, it's like a clear straight road, where I can make speed towards the target. When thinking through what will happen, I can go in one step from today to that future event, and think through from there, as I know the path from now to then is a certainty.

Obviously, this has advantages, but it also means that it's <screeching tires, cars spinning around, everything flashing past the windshield and ending up beside the road and in the wrong direction> when just in front of me a car appears from a hidden side road; read: "when the thing is not happening as it was supposed to." The impossible occured and that's not easy to adjust to.

I'm not stupid (as far as I know); I'm just used to thinking in terms of what is certain. The situation in traffic is normally no problem, as I can recognise hidden side roads because/when they are clearly marked, which will warn me beforehand. In life, some things are much easier for me to deal with if I've been warned in advance that they may not go as expected.

Things are, almost by definition, different for other autists, And anyone speaking of "cure" around an autist should probably be asked whether they have a "cure" for their own unconventional way of thinking. But sometimes, it may help to address the possibility of failure beforehand, even if that means starting with talking about what to do for an imaginary cousin/neighbour in a similar situation who needs a way to compensate the last 5% after a promise came only 95 % true.

Just my view from inside the lighthouse.

Bye,
                                                                                                                                 Mysha