hi everyone! I'm leaving for the d.c. area today for the week. did I ever tell you that I'm part of a great team that teaches child abuse professionals to interview kids? we'll have a class of detectives, prosecutors and child protective social workers for the week. I love the program and I love the rest of the faculty, so I always look forward to these training weeks.what I don't look forward to is the sense of secondary trauma I leave with at the end of the week. it's a solid 5 days of sexual abuse, violent crime and hurt kids. it can be a bit much (in the real job, you get it in bits and pieces, so there's plenty of recovery time). and part of my job is to keep the class interested and committed in doing this important but difficult work.
hence, the happy kid photos. I hope these smiles inoculate me this week and bring you a big dose of joy. the knowledge of what some people do to children's bodies and spirits can impact my psyche in a huge way. it's a delicate balance, to stay with the real material and be resilient to its effect. I will miss you all and will try to check in throughout the week.
{click here for flickr photo credits.}
p.s. click here to see the heart-wrenching video we start the week with (there are religious overtones, but the message is important). if you have the opportunity this week, make a child feel loved and protected.
