It's been almost a year since I left my old employment at "the kiddie prison." My last day there was August 3, 2007. Today a friend from there emailed me for the second time in 4 days to let me know that another student recognized me as making a difference in their lives. Let me explain.
Students at this facility go through a level system. They are not given determinate sentences, ie they aren't told they have 6 months or 3 years in prison. They are sent to the facility and put on a program. They are expected to behave on their living unit, perform daily chores, and attend counseling sessions as well as school. If they do these things and do them well, they earn their levels every three weeks. If they mess up and receive "majors" or "minors" (write-ups for infractions of behavior) they do not earn a level, or even sometimes are returned a level.
When they receive "release level," they must go before a committee of staff members and explain why they should be released. When they are approved for release, they are asked which staff members had the most impact on them. This is called "Making a Difference."
Two students in the past two weeks have mentioned my name. Not one. But two.
Did I mention I haven't been there since August of last year?
This is amazing to me. I cannot believe that I had such an impact on a young man (scratch that, two young men) that they remember me almost an entire year since I left them. This is huge for me. First of all, it shows me that I really did achieve something there. I really did help some troubled boys, which was the reason for me taking the job in the first place. Second of all, it eases the guilt that I have had since parting from that facility. I truly felt I was abandoning "my boys" when I walked out those doors that bright sunny Friday almost a year ago.
Lately I have been feeling a little down concerning the facility. I left a lot of friends there, or so I thought. I cried every day for my entire last week there, fearing the departure from such great relationships. I loved some of the people there; I truly did. And I thought the love I had for them was returned. They gave me cards, threw me a going away party of sorts, drowned me in hugs and promised contacts. Yet where are they? Where are the promised contacts? It saddened me to think I was completely forgotten--just tossed aside.
But you know what? They can all bite me (except for J, who was the one who sent me the emails and has kept in contact the whole time....who knew the one gal I wasn't close to before I left would be the one to remain friends? ha!) So the adults forgot about me. I wasn't there for them anyway (or at least, I wasn't supposed to be). I was there for the boys, and I DID help them. I DID succeed.
And that's all that really matters, isn't it?
