The first question I asked was how he came to live at Remar. He said it was because of his brother. When I asked him if his brother was worried about a substance abuse problem he might have, he looked shocked at the thought of it. He said he has no problem. He and his brother have lived at Remar for 4 years in the Managua facility because they had no where else to go. They had different fathers, which is very common in this nation. Noel's stepfather would beat them in his drunkenness and they ran away.
A couple of months ago, Noel was transferred to the Leon facility; separated from his brother. I asked him about his parents and he said "they probably think we are dead". Noel has had no communication in 4 years with family members. In Nicaragua, families who have no roots move frequently, thus making it easy to lose track of each other quickly. It's hard to imagine children being totally abandoned.
We have noticed that he stays in the background during class, like he is trying to be invisible. We sense that he longs for attention but will not seek it for fear of being rejected. He is very polite, courteous, conscientious and wants to please.
We enjoy having him in the class; he works hard and is a good example to the couple of boys who present behavioral issues. I will continue to draw him out and encourage him to share more in conversations with the other boys.
No comments:
Post a Comment