Just to give a little background - I am a school social worker in an elementary school. This has been my calling for the past 19 years.
Today, I met with a student, we will call him Sam. He is a tough one as he doesn't really trust or let people really get to know him. I would love to share that over the course of the year that we have made great strides. That my skill sets have equipped him with the strategies he needs to be successful in school. That he no longer needs social work because he is implementing all that he has learned. Unfortunately, that is not the case. He still needs social work to help him learn new skills and he doesn’t always implement them independently. However, today he actually sat at my table with me, not standing against the wall or sitting on the floor - as far away as possible. He was wholeheartedly engaged in our activity talking about the signs our bodies give us to indicate we are feeling a certain way. Sam tried his best without frustration, which is a success in itself. He wasn’t in a hurry to escape the social work office and even told me to have a good day. It doesn’t seem like much, but at that moment - Sam trusted that my office was a safe place and he was with a safe adult. He may forget that he trusts me during his next rough moment at school. For today, I will soak that in and know that what seems to be a small, itty bitty step is a gigantic leap forward for him. I'm going to live in that moment for as long as I can.
5 Comments
vossh
3/16/2022 09:59:36 pm
Those cases where you don't see the growth on a daily basis are so hard to keep moving forward. So soak in that small success of today!
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3/16/2022 10:14:46 pm
Your job is so difficult and so necessary, but you must be very good to have finally reached this boy. You tell this story so simply yet so effectively. Good luck to both you and to Sam as well.
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Sara T.
3/16/2022 10:38:20 pm
Always remember the work you put in now may help them bloom on someone else's watch. Sometimes the "Sams" turn into "B.P.s" that come back to thank you for the work you did 6 years later.
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Teri Keys
3/17/2022 07:37:03 am
We'll take even the smallest successes!
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Trina Perez
3/18/2022 06:17:18 pm
All of the support you give these kids, all of the tools you teach them, help them to get further than they would have if you hadn't been in their life. These small moments to you are huge!
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AuthorI have worked in social work for over 25 years. The past 19 years have been within an elementary school setting. Archives
March 2022
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