Words that Inspire

Hello All,

I hope everyone has had a fantastic week so far. I have had a very busy week and unfortunately it’s just getting started. I had a great first week of school. I have already written my first paper…:/ which is crazy but thankfully I have an English major best friend “Elizabeth Horton” who checked everything out and gave me some great suggestions.  This weekend I will be taking a crises intervention seminar which will be very interesting. By the end of the weekend I should be FEMA certified! In other words if a hurricane happens to blow through Texas or a tornado takes down your house…you can count on me to help. There isn’t much else to report about school. I think it’s going to take some time for me to get used to doing school work again. I did find out that in graduate school 94 and above is an A! OK seriously? I’m like a crazy person when I don’t get an A so hopefully I will manage to meet the 94% standard…no pressure.

I currently work part time for an old friend who happens to be an optometrist. While working yesterday I ran into two little boys that really reminded me of why I want to be a social worker. Both boys had ADHD, but were so doped up on Adderall they could barely read the numbers on the chart to me. Neither of them were wearing clothes that fit them and they both looked like that hadn’t been bathed in days. Their father didn’t even bother to go back with them to get their eyes examined or even help them pick out glasses.  I tried to talk to both boys but they were both so dis-engaged. It truly made me sad. I wanted to walk up to their dad and ask if he even cared that his children both needed glasses in such a severe way that I wasn’t sure how they were getting school work done.  I thought about those two boys all night wishing and hoping that I might have said something to them that made them happy even if it was just for a moment. How do kids like this slip by? Am I the only one that notices these things? As crazy as it seems I feel like I notice people in need more often than others. When I see children like the two boys I saw yesterday I feel such a pull to help. I can’t wait until I finish school. I know social workers make peanuts for salary’s but I am going to feel so blessed and so happy to be able to go to bed at night knowing that I helped someone or made an effort to improve someone’s life.

I think we should all remember that service comes back to us in so many ways. Every day we should make an effort to say something to someone that is selfless and kind. Open a door for someone, say thank you, complement the person beside you…etc. I can remember so many random moments that someone has said something to me that stuck and really made me think. I hope that as a social worker I am able to provide words of wisdom to the people I serve. Words that they think about and it inspires them to be better or at least brings a smile to their face.

OK I’ll get off my soap box now. Next week I should have more to report on school so you can all take pity on me. I already have another project I’m about to start that’s due week 3. Wish me luck…:)