June 23, 2011

Dear Leslie,

Our niece Casey graduated from the local university last month with a degree in fashion merchandising. That's after starting college intent on becoming a pharmacist. Our niece Carly graduated from the University of Cincinnati a few weeks ago. She will become an elementary school teacher like her mom. Our niece Kim is studying in Spain this summer. She is double majoring in premed and Spanish at Ohio State.

The little girls I used to push on the swings at Capaha Park or watched coloring Easter eggs with their grandmother on a table in the backyard are now young women who've set a course in life.

When she was in high school, Carly rarely spoke when we were around and refused to eat most foods other than macaroni and cheese. She was thin as a bottle. My mom worried about her. Of course, my mom worries about everyone.

Then Carly was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and placed on a drug regimen. Her grades went way up. When she graduated she wore the magna cum laude honor cord, designating a student with at least a 3.7 GPA.

The drug Carly takes and has learned to regulate herself allows her powers of concentration other students envy. Some have even asked her to give them some to help them study or complete a project.

I suspect DC might have undiagnosed ADHD and might come from a line of people who misplaced their keys and eyeglasses once or twice a day. Her mother and I know the conversations that fly off on seemingly unrelated tangents, only to find out with probing that the subjects are related deep inside our spouse's brain.

The public television station has been airing a program about adults with ADHD. Come watch our life on TV, I yell, but DC's too busy.

Restlessness and impulsivity are ADHD symptoms that could look like multitasking. Who multitasks 20 hours a day?

The people on TV talk about the 20 unfinished projects in their home. The problem is that one project reminds DC of another. She might be feeding her parakeets when the thought that most birds fly south for the winter sends her to the south side of our house where she's been meaning to plant flowers. The birds get fed eventually.

I wonder if people with ADHD attract like-minded others. That would explain the unbidden appearance of our Jack Russell terriers Buster and Dizzy in our lives. They are hyperactivity and impulsiveness incarnate. They and DC are great buddies.

Casey always has dressed creatively and found herself when she discovered that medicinal alchemy wasn't her calling. Kim hopes to become a doctor who speaks Spanish.

Carly will make a fine teacher. She knows firsthand that some people who appear unable to concentrate might only require understanding.

Love, Sam

Sam Blackwell is a former reporter for the Southeast Missourian.