story on the topic self reflection is the school of wisdom
Answers
This week’s seminar has been the most connected I have ever felt to any of my classmates. It’s a struggle attempting to connect to behind the veil of a computer screen, trying to convey emotion and gauge the emotion of others. As I transcribed this piece to present to my group, I nervously wrote my feelings; feelings of confusion, anger, and sadness attempting to try and understand where and if, I fit into this whole process that I so hate. In today’s world, we claim that we have changed from our past transgressions and mistakes, that we take the higher road when it comes to working with Aboriginal communities, but I say we have just become more covert in our plans. Blackstock (2007) with her ever articulate integrity ,always exposes the truth. More children are in care in today’s society than they were during the peak of the 60’s scoop and during Residential school. she shares….absolutely appalling. I knew this practicum would be a challenge for me, but I never could have imagined how much so. I, as I am sure many other do, struggle with understanding how to forgive parents who do awful things to their children. I’ve come to understand that no parent inherently wants to harm their children, but a multitude of pain, trauma and grief can enabled so many individuals so broken inside that they are unable to open their hearts to their children in ways that are so instrumental to their growth and survival. Listening to my classmates presentation about working on the peds unit, and encountering parents who had shaken their baby, was mind boggling how one moves past these horrors to look beneath the act and simply see individuals who are in lost and in pain, and have made a mistake. After presenting my senario and engaging in a discussion with my classmates I waited patiently for one individual inparticular. This individual in past seminars and discussions has presented such depth and vision in practice and had shared her difficult story of being a first nations child in care who was removed. Her bravery a few weeks back shone through, sharing her difficulties navigating her practicum due to duel relationships that consistently appeared, due to her being confronted with members of her family in her case load. Throughout her presentation I was drawn to her integrity and depth and compassion for all those she encountered. She asked to speak to my presentation, sharing she felt as if she may burst if she didn’t have the chance. She first of all thanked me for bringing this very important topic into our discussions. Secondly, she shared in no way should I feel ashamed or burdened with having to be part of a system who removes First Nations Children from First Nation’s homes. Between excitement of sharing, and tears of emotion she shared that she was thankful for the white social worker that removed her, and that the white family she was with taught her self-love and that the condition she was living in before was not ok. She thanked me for being a true ally to first nations people and shared that she would have been honoured if I was the social worker who had removed her as a child.She thanked all of us all for our empathy and passion to strive for change and empowerment and shared we would all make a difference to future first nations children we encountered. Needless to say her words broke me…..in the best possible way. They not only touched my heart but made me seriously question so many things about my practice and what I believed was right. I hope to one day encounter her in person to share the profound impact she had on me, and how sometimes one single moment can completely change your direction in life.