First, I believe truly iron sharpens iron. I was around people who were truly hurting as a result of having family members with mental illnesses. Their struggles at some point made them feel alone. They had moments where they had to utilize hospitalization and the police to bring about peace in their homes. I truly got an inside view of what my parents go through (parents I work with) in helping their children. I got a glimmer of their feelings of hopelessness and struggle, my heart aches for them.
I have been struggling this summer with coming up with something new to do at my school this year, I got my answer.... reach out to the parents! As the speaker and the parents tell their stories my pen moving, ideas and thoughts just flowed.
Secondly, it is difficult for people to navigate a system meant to help them when they don't know where to start or what to do. I got my second answer, as I meet people who are concerned about their children's education or their ability to learn, I will have handouts available for them that give information and I will carve out time in my schedule to ensure that they fully understand how to navigate the system. I will educate myself further on how to navigate, the system and I will have interventions prepared for students so when I attend an IP meeting it would be productive on my part. I will make sure they get what they need.
I felt guilty about being there because someone asked me to come and at first I was like nah but then when I heard the whole thing was free and the kept at me so I was like, "road trip". The problem is by Friday I felt out of place because these parents had children with severe mental illnesses I felt it wasn't my place to be here these were parents not professionals here for some getaway from everyday life. These were parents and a few professionals who struggled with helping or getting help. I had a conversation with one of the presenters about what I was feeling, she informed me that I needed to be here that my position or place in the struggle was going to be different because I was a professional.
I still felt like my purpose needed to be something more, I found out what the purpose was on the very last day almost the very last half hour as a parent discussed her child and was hurting for him. We (her son and I) had something in common and I needed to let her know he would be fine and ways to support him. This was my purpose, to provide comfort to someone who is struggling with something that I was all too familiar with.
On my way back I reflected on my adventure, I was feeling really good about connecting with people who didn't even look like me nor did they belong to my community. My mind was brought back to reality from my utopia as I noticed the Trump signs and the signs with racist quotes which seem to mock the movement of black lives matter. It reminded me that in this life sometimes as you make two steps forward, you actually get put three steps back. This is the world I live in so now what?
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