It just keeps getting colder and rainier here in Kentucky, and my wife and I will have to postpone our jog-in-the-park yet again. Of course, if we really wanted to run, we’d put on a poncho and run. And if I really wanted to learn Spanish I’d study everyday, etc. etc. I guess what I really want to do is chill out on this cushy chair and play with my computer, ’cause that’s what I actually do every friggin’ morning.
Last night I gave my “Zen Story” lecture to the kids on the Chemical Dependency Unit. It was a version of the old classic where the zen master holds the student’s head under water for a while, then releases him and says something like: “When you want enlightenment as much as you wanted that breath, you’ll get it.” I had planned to make all these brilliant connections to the recovery process and whatnot, but instead the discussion was mostly about who kept passing gas during group and which kids were making fun of a disabled patient whenever my back was turned.
Working with teenagers–most of whom show no interest in working toward change–can leave you shaking your head at times. They’re just not gonna get it, not gonna really hear anything you have to say, until they’re good and ready, if ever. And when you’re dealing with eighteen kids at the same time, it’s tough to meet them all “where they’re at” because they’re each “at” a different spot. So, you often end up reaching two or three kids and babysitting the other fifteen. What can you do.
I still find myself genuinely caring about every kid, no matter how many times they respond to my best therapeutic efforts with a nasty fart.
Hey, at least I’m getting a response…