She seems to understand that her son did ok for himself, but he is still upset.
Hi Lorel,
((waving wildly))
What a pity!
I guess the main thing I would worry about is that the mom doesn't know that her son is upset. If she knows, then she can try to help, if he's shielding her, then you have more of a duty to do something.
I'm not sure how this might help, but I try to use myself as an example of a happy, successful person, able to contribute to others in many ways, who
isn't PG. I also share what it was like for me to discover in college, that I wasn't the top scorer. I guess I also had the frustration of recognizing that although I wasn't in the strongest group academically, I still had to hunt for friends who could appreciate my way of viewing the world. Personally, it was always easy to swallow not being as bright as X, Y and Z as long as I had them to talk about movies and poems with. It was harder to swallow not being as academically able as A, B, and C, who's only interests were the usual college distractions.
If I dared try to talk to the friend myself, I would ask him what it 'means' to be able to score the top 5% on all tests, even the talent searches. I think that many gifted children, in particular, come to view themselves as only worthy if they are 'on top.' Since I believe that every human being is infinitely valuble, and has an important contribution to make, even if I never know what it is, or understand the big picture, I enjoy the teachable moments like this. I wish I could talk the more clearly, but this is the best I've got for now.
Love and More Love,
Grinity
