Recommendation

My daughter is a senior in high school, and the guidance dept at the Academy is helping to ready her for college applications. As part of this process, they asked that parents write a recommendation for their child... and this is what I came up with. If my parents had written me a recommendation when I was that age, I wonder what they would have written?

"From the time Amy was a very little girl she has fostered an avid interest in science and the natural world, often displaying knowledge far above her grade level. In addition to readily absorbing and recalling facts and figures on these subjects, she has shown time and again that she possesses a unique and special sense where nature is concerned, a certain insight and intuition that at times leaves me speechless.

For instance, not long ago the two of us were working on an activity in the basement of our house, when a small spider crept in too close for comfort. I busied myself for an interval with the task of shooing the small creature away, while Amy looked on. “It’s very territorial.” she observed as I finally managed to banish the beast back to a dark corner. “Territorial.” I said to myself in wonderment, “All this time I’m obsessed with my territory, and how the spider should get out of my way, while she’s seeing through the eyes of my tiny adversary- sensing (rightly, perhaps) that I am the interloper!”

And then there was the conversation about strawberries... just this spring... we were sorting through a fresh-picked batch of the wild, red berries when she made the following observation:

“You know,” Amy mused, “Other animals like the strawberries, too. Ants eat them. In fact, they drill little holes in them. When I see one with a little hole I don’t pick it because...”

She paused, and she being a somewhat finicky teenage girl I fully expected her to say something like “because I don’t want ant spit on my strawberry. Yuk.” But she didn’t. She said:

“...because it means the ants need that strawberry. And I would not take it from them.”

I never would have thought of it that way. Amazing.

Amy has generously given much of her free time in volunteering at the Harvest Hills Animal Shelter in Fryeburg, Maine. No animal is ‘just a dog’ or ‘just a cat’ to her. All have names, and past histories and personalities that are, to her, as important as any human being’s.

Amy was born into this world with Asperger’s Syndrome (commonly defined as a disorder of social communication) and also with attention deficit disorder. These have, at times, made school a struggle for Amy, both socially and academically. Yet in spite of these drawbacks, and because of Amy’s positive and determined spirit, she has ‘made the grade,’ both literally and figuratively. In the realm of academics she has proven that she can handle tough college prep courses, and in the world of social interaction she has shown time and again that she can be confident, charming, and (most important of all) be herself.

Amy’s lack of executive function will always provide a challenge for her, and she may need help from time to time staying organized enough to get through college life. She knows, however, when to ask for help, and she has many years of experience in fighting this particular foe to draw on.

Amy does not want to be rich. She does not aspire to be famous. She seeks only to find her niche in the world, a position whereby she can share her outstandingly unique talents, vibrant creativity, and gentle insights with others who inhabit her beloved natural world."
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