Be The Change.

I experienced so many different things at my internship yesterday that my head is spinning!

First, we attended a foster care re-licensing session so that my supervisor knows how to properly renew her foster mom's license come this Summer. I tell you what, I am amazed at the amount of paperwork, legwork, etc, that goes into licensing someone to become foster parents. Holy shit! You would think they were applying to become the next President. It is insane, but I definitely understand the need for it. You want to ensure the children are placed with appropriate people.

During this meeting, people were discussing how they get calls from people who are looking for employment in fostering! I know this is way more common than it should be, but there are definitely people out there who foster for the money. And I will tell you, you don't get a lot, and it is certainly not enough to fully support the child - you need to use some of your own income, for sure. So, it makes me wonder about the children in these homes, and the level of neglect. I think it is less common today with all the checks and balances, reports, etc. - but still...

After lunch, we sorted through legal paperwork for TPR and Petition for Adoption. What a headache! Then, we went to court to file it. Then we had to retrieve some birth certificates from the Office of Vital Statistics. We tried to squeeze the Social Security office in there, but they close at 3:30! What is up with government agencies closing early? Honestly, I think government agencies should have different or longer hours. If you think about it, the people who most likely need to visit these agencies are the people who don't have the luxury to take time off from work. Our systems are so broken. Boo. GET A CLUE!

THEN - we went to the hospital to speak with a birth mom. This woman is of Mayan decent, so communicating with her was difficult. C. speaks Spanish, and has experience with Mayans, so she said phrases 4 or 5 different ways before B.M. understood. This isn't an ideal situation. B.M. can't understand the process, nor the paperwork she has to sign. Come to find out, she can't read or write either, so her signature was an X. C. told me that she had requested to leave the baby (Safe Haven) but the hospital administrator urged her to speak with us so we could get as much information as possible pertaining to her health, etc. Yea...no. That isn't going to happen. C. is going to look into a translator for when she visits B.M. to get consent, but who knows if B.M. would tell us anything.

We got to see baby and he is just beautiful. He went to term and he is very healthy. They did all types of health screens on B.M. and baby and there doesn't seem to be any health issues, so that is good. The nurses were asking us about B.M.'s bruises, of which we could get no information from her. It would take months, most likely, for B.M. to open up to C. And even then, she probably wouldn't disclose that she is physically beaten by a man/men. She told us she didn't know who birth father was, and where he could be. Not sure if that was legitimate, but it's all we have. People of these ethnic groups (typically undocumented and in the U.S. illegally) are very distrusting of any official-type because we all represent the government to them, which of course means, they could be sent packing. C. told me later that abuse is very common in that culture, and you just don't talk about it, nor confront it. You just accept it. *sigh* Also, when asked if they use condoms, B.M. said they don't like them. It is quite common to hear this, and I assume the women don't dare question it. Blah.

I guess the good thing coming out of this is that baby is going to a good family. I wish I could be there when C. made the call. I hope that B.M. walks away from this into a better situation for herself, and I really hope that we don't meet her again...

Next week:

• Intake with pregnant teen for counseling, and explore her options
• Post-placement with couple who adopted an infant from India
• "Child Abuse and Neglect" training

I've only been out of the country twice. Once, on a cruise with my mom (we visited Belize City, Belize; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; and Cozumel, Mexico), and once to Costa Rica for my honeymoon with Todd. I am very thankful for those experiences. I truly love to travel, but I've never been in the position to do it often, either financial or time-wise. Now, I have the opportunity to visit another country, once again, but at a steep price. :/

July 3 - 12 of this year, the School of Social Work will be taking students to London for a tour of social services in the UK. It is a 3 credit hour program that will consist of the study of international social work in the United Kingdom, tracing the emergence and history of social services in the U.K.and how they have influenced current delivery of social services in the United States. Students will visit important sites that impact social services including, but not limited to: settlement houses (REALLY interested in learning more about these!), Parliament, churches, and agencies providing social services (such as child welfare, mental health, health care, poverty programs, etc.). Students will participate in lectures and tours of Charles Darwin Museum, Freud Museum, Anna Freud Center, Westminster Abbey, Toynbee Hall and Windsor Castle.

The fee is steep, as you can imagine. It covers Airfare (Virgin Atlantic), double occupancy accommodations w/ English breakfast daily, one medieval dinner, guided tour of Windsor Castle, visits to museums, universities and social service agencies, tips and gratuities, 7-day travel card for unlimited use of the tube and buses, roundtrip airport transfers via private motorcoach, basic insurance, International Student ID Card, pre-departure orientation, and on-site support staff. That is a lot. That leaves the actual cost of tuition, most meals and spending money. It is a lot of money; for a grad student who only works part-time with a spouse who is in med school full-time and doesn't work. Money that I don't necessarily have. I did apply for Summer Financial Aid, that COULD apply to either the tuition and/or the trip cost.

In reality, spending this chunk of money is crazy due to the the situation Todd and I are currently in. However, I have set up a separate savings account to put money away for this. I will put money from each check, as well as our small tax refund. It won't nearly be enough when it is time to pay it all, but at least it will lessen the blow. And, there is always the hope for Financial Aid to cover it. I will obviously have to pay that money back but I already have loans to pay back anyway!

I am going to an info session this Saturday morning, and look forward to hearing more about this opportunity.

1. What is the first thought that comes to your mind when you think of Water as a social justice issue? I immediately think of women living in refugee camps, such as those who have been displaced due to genocide in their country. These women may have to leave the safety and security of the camp to walk for miles to fetch water (although the main thing they collect is firewood) which puts them in terrible danger of being raped/slaughtered by militia. I also think of the many women who have to travel miles and miles for one bucket of water and loose valuable time that is needed to keep their villages alive!
   
2. What, if any, exposure have you personally had to a water shortage? My only exposure would be due to a hurricane, and we had to drink/bathe from bottled water for a few days. This is not exactly a shortage though, in the real scheme of things.
   
3. What potential action steps can you think of that relate to this month’s theme of Water? We all need to do our part to conserve water. Did you know that it takes 3 plastic bottles full of water to make the one plastic bottle? Ridiculous, I know. One way you can help conserve water is to not buy bottled water, and instead buy a stainless steel container to refill, and a filter for your tap, or a filtered pitcher. You will also be saving the environment buy producing less plastic, which is not biodegradable! As far as the global water crisis, educate yourself and others! http://water.org, http://www.globalwater.org, http://activewater.org, http://www.fh.org/.
   

So I've been doing research for a Family Systems Theory paper I have to write. We have to pick a presenting problem, either real or made up, in our own family. We need to do a bio-psycho-social assessment, apply different family system theories, create interventions, etc. I always struggle with writing - it does not come easy for me. However, the research part is where I excel. I wanted to be a Research Librarian for years (still have that passion, actually).

Whenever I feel stressed, upset, sad, anxious, nervous, overwhelmed...I turn to these guys. They are like a long lost friend; one I may not talk to on a constant basis, but who is there for me when I need them. I don't know what it is about their music that makes me smile as wide as I possibly can, but it works, and I thank them for it every time.

I think my experiences at my internship today were the most eye-opening, and the most clinical. I think I learned a lot about reading people, and just how much people can fool me. One case, I saw right through the person, and felt her falseness immediately. The other pulled the wool over my eyes, and I'm lucky I didn't say something to make the situation worse. C. and I debriefed after each session. I wasn't surprised to see that I was correct on the one - C. obviously picked up on her before I did, and we went over our assumptions, etc. The other case, I was not as knowledgeable on the complexity of the situation, and I certainly did not pick up on some of the controlling and manipulating behaviors - which they almost got away with on me! I must have somehow subconsciously picked up on C's cues because when we debriefed after, she said I changed my wording (for the better) right at the last moment. I told her I have no clue why I did, because I just did not pick up on any of the things she pointed out. However, it all made perfect sense when the evidence was laid out. I'm glad I didn't screw up the session, but I am also glad that I got to see manipulation in action. I think that had I known the background on the clients and their situation, I may have been a bit more keen to what was being said.

It's not like it's the first time I've ever encountered someone like this, but I can be gullible when I'm trying to see the good in a person. I assume that part of me will change real fast when I really get out in the big bad world of social work. However, you take the good with the bad, and the bad with the good.

Great experiences!

Bella Lili offers some of the best jewelry around. It is SO different, very gothic / steampunk<, and totally rad. Here are my new fav. pieces:

PPassage - Skeleton Key and Skull Cameo Lariat Necklace

*drool*

She is currently having a contest on her blog for this altered purse. Make sure you pop on over and enter to win!

I just love this artist. I really, really love her music. I really find her quite amazing, and thus, I'm sharing some of my fav. tunes with you. I was introduced to Brooke Fraser by a former classmate; a young Christian woman who has opened up a church with her husband. Not surprisingly, Brooke Fraser is a Christian artist out of New Zealand. I was raised with Christian ideals, but I refer to myself as a Spiritual Agnostic (and I just figured this out recently!). Not an issue though, I am open to any form of music, and some of Brooke's lyrics have very subtle messages.

My classmate told me that Brooke took a trip to Rwanda 10 years after the genocide. During her trip, she was introduced to a young girl named Albertine, and thus, the song below was born. Being an anti-genocide advocate/activist (although I can't say I put time into it now since my schedule is overfull), and since Rwanda has a special place in my heart, the song brings tears to my eyes every stinkin' time. Honestly, I hope to one day adopt a young child like Albertine.



Other beautiful songs by Brooke.

This particular video is really cool!












This is probably my fav (aside from Albertine) - the lyrics, the piano and violins, her voice. It's amazing.

Sunday, I am going to accompany my field supervisor to a local hospital to pick up a Safe Haven infant. The baby boy was born late last night, so he will be discharged early Sunday morning. The birth mother has told the nurses that she would like to leave the child under the Safe Haven Law, but in order to do that, she can't be present when we arrive. It's disheartening, to me, that she doesn't want to be involved in finding a good home for her baby (i.e. choosing the adopted parents, or at least being involved at some level) but I completely understand her reasons not to. It probably makes the situation a tad easier when you just walk away from it. I do not judge her for her choices, and I do hope that she finds peace in her decision. I will not be able to go to the hospital and see this tiny infant without thinking of birth mom, and how much she is suffering. However, I am completely excited to finally have the opportunity to retrieve an infant from a hospital and deliver him to his new devoted and extremely thankful family.

So, I'm filling out my field application for my next field internship. I am excited about some of my choices:

• A couple of Independent Living program serving adolescents in foster care. This is a MAJOR interest of mine! Program focuses on activities that prepare foster youth and homeless teens for successful independent living when they turn 18. Offered during after-school hours, the curriculum includes core classes, job coaching, substance abuse prevention activities, sports clubs, broadcast journalism training and life skills classes.

• A community-based, gender-responsive prevention, diversion and early intervention program serving girls, ages 12-17. The particular model of this org has been recognized nationally for helping girls find success in school, with their families and in their communities by integrating education, counseling, training and advocacy. Another area of interest!

• Social Work in Schools!

• A charitable organization that is composed of a network of host and sponsor faith communities that help homelessness families with children. The program brings immediate but temporary shelter, meals, and support services to homeless families. The goal is to restore the families to long term self sufficiency. I think one of my classmates is currently interning here