Oh my, all this brings back such a flood of memories. I just sent my eldest DS off to college this fall, just finished going through the whole list of issues. For most, as time goes on it gets better!
One of the biggest things that seemed to change the perspective of a lot of people concerning our eldest DS was that we've always taught him that God gives each person blessings and we should be using those blessings to help others. Eldest DS took that to heart, started mentoring / tutoring students who were having trouble at the start of his Freshman year in HS. Not only were others very appreciative of his efforts and saw him in a new light but DS developed a lot of empathy and indeed did see how blessed he is.
