How common is this?

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I was reading a description of a book called Smiling at Shadows written by a Mum of an Autistic boy, a passage of which says:

"As a baby, Dane Waites didn't smile at his parents, or meet their gaze - Dane smiled at the shadows of moving trees. The movement of the leaves distracted and comforted him in a way that neither toys nor physical comfort could."

My NV son does very similar things. He will not look at us much. He will run up to see long grass blowing in the breeze and giggle and jump up and down. He will stare round-eyed at trees and their leaves blowing in the wind and when they get really wild he can get quite scared. If we're out in the late afternoon he will get off his little bike and run up and down looking at his shadow flapping his arms.

Is this a common thing for Autistic kids? Just interested, mainly I would love to know what's going on his little head! I think maybe he thinks the trees are moving by themselves.

IMHO I think he does it because it's beautiful. That's the gift of a different neurology sometimes, you're transfixed by the utter beauty of small things others never really see.

Of course! The patterns in the wind blown leaves are very interesting and enjoyable to watch. Try getting him a lava lamp. That will entertain him for hours.

Yes!! ! I used to love doing stuff like that as well (now I can't really) but now enjoy lava lamps as was suggested above . But unlike what I think you said about your son, I did always smile at my mother.

Yeah, it sounds pretty cool to me. My guys are all currently verbal and don't do that but I've seen other kids at school do it. It's wonderful to see the joy on their faces.

I havent found a good one recently but they have these fiber optic lamps that blow the lava lamps out of the water they spin, can blow in wind and light up. http://www.partylightsonline.com/site/1 ... uct/MR-200 that one is a single color one and looks pretty lame but it gives you a general idea light is at the bottom and pretty much only shows on the tip so its a big light up tree looking thing.

When my son was a baby I would sit on the sofa and hold him. He would look behind me at the blank white wall and smile. I always wondered about that but now I think he must have been smiling at shadows crossing the wall.

I never noticed my son looking at shadows, but he has always loved the wind. Ever since he was a baby, he loves to feel the wind blowing on his face!

So it sounds like he really just does just enjoy looking at these things; that its pleasing to him. I do like to look at his eyes as he looks, he's so still and intent on what he's looking at.
Lava lamp is a brilliant idea, I'll get one!

I love to watch clouds, tree leaves, and tall grass. Especially tall grass in the night; it's magical. Like a bed sheet being stretched after drying.

I loved looking at shadows, as a very small child.