The complete set of 198 Hints are available in paperback from the CYC-Net Press store.
Listen
There is a charming story from one of the First Nations traditions. A man is walking with a group of children from one village to another. When they are about half way, he notices that one of the children is tiring. The man stops and sits down on a rock and says to the group: "I am getting tired. Would you mind if we take a little break?"
In Child and Youth Care work, it is not only our relationships and interventions and skills that are crucial, but also our timing ... our pacing of young people through the work we have to do together. We know that their development has been temporarily interrupted, that they are short on self-confidence, motivation, trust and energy. But also that ultimately they must catch up with their timetables, with their peer groups.
Our story is about knowing where kids are headed, being acutely aware of what they can manage right now and what must wait – and of protecting their dignity when the economy of their energy and performance is upset ... when they need a break. The breaks which result from our observation and sensitivity will usually prove to be perfectly timed – and they are necessary, strategic breaks. Any breaks we take on a journey have reflection built into them: how far we have travelled, the direction we are taking, what we expect to pass on the way ahead, how much further to go. The breaks we are talking about here are exactly like that.
We are often tempted to be impatient. We wish kids would shape up, get their act together, do what’s expected of them. But we also remember that we are in a process of rebuilding, regaining balance, restoring hope. These things will take time. Maybe tomorrow, next week, next month, they will be getting back up to speed. Maybe not today.
Take a break.
