One child....I used to know....
The following school year came and with staff changes I became Jeff case coordinator. This meant that I was the teacher in charge of Jeff's overall program. I would attend all of his meetings with his parents and help with his mainstreaming issues.
The first meeting came and I got a chance to meet Jeff's foster mother. She came in on crutches. Dirty, and very tired looking. With her she had a little girl who looked about 5. The foster mother carried an envelope.
We sat down at the meeting table and the foster mother took the floor immediately. She began to ramble about Jeff. She talked about how he spent hours in the shower, stole her cigarettes and how hard he was to get along with. She then shared with the team that she thought someone was molesting her little girl and that her little girl had a yeast infection. She told us that her oldest son had broken her leg and that was why she was on crutches. At this point I was wondering how a family like this one could ever have become a foster family.
She pulled out the envelope ripped out a blotchy looking letter and threw it on the table. She began to curse about how Jeff's mother left Jeff with her and refused to give her guardianship rights so she couldn't get any money for his keep. The letter said that Jeff's mother didn't want him anymore. It said that Jeff was a no good so and so like his -------- father and that the mother had no use for him and that she would never sign any papers that would give anyone money for him.
As this was going on I was able to watch Jeff. Jeff never took his eyes from his shoes. His fingers wiggled in his lap while he stared at his shoes. I wanted to cry for this boy. I wanted to grab him and walk out of there and never look back. I wanted to stand up and scream and yell and tell everyone that this woman needed to be shut up so that this boy would not be destroyed further.
Instead, I spoke out and changed the subject entirely. I told them all that Jeff wanted to take Clothing Design this year. The entire flavor of the meeting was changed. Everyone brightened up even the foster mother. Jeff looked up too.
Latest Articles