Wednesday, January 13, 2010

MAPP #5

Good Day!!

Let me start this post by saying that I have no idea what the hell it's going to look like once it's posted.
It seems like every day Blogger is making changes and things never look the same from day to day.

That being said...MAPP class #5 was a GREAT class. We had a DCF lawyer come in and talk to the class and she had a lot of great information to share. We left there last night with a much better feeling about the entire process and how it works. Assuming that everything we heard is true (we're still being very careful about being swept up in all the positive talk) we're hoping that this will continue to be a good experience for Jim and I.

After the lawyer left, we did a 'guided imagery' exercise that was pretty intense. We shut off all the lights in the room, closed our eyes, and were 'guided' through the entire process of being abruptly removed from our home. At one point, Noreen (not her real name) was telling us to pack whatever we could fit into a garbage bag, and as she was saying that, Krystal (not her real name) walked around the room and threw a garbage bag at each of us. It may not sound like it, but it was a really effective moment. The entire thing really put into perspective the way that these kids must feel and how horribly unsettling, scary, and sad the process is for them. Blech...
All in all, the class was a really good one, and our snacks were a hit. ;-)

In non-MAPP news, a majority of my softball teammates take off today to go play in a tournament in Orlando. I was planning on going with them, but it just didn't work out. There's too much going on and it would have been spending money that we really didn't have to spend. I'm a little sad because not only would it have been fun to go down to Florida for a (HUGE) tournament, but they're heading down a day or so early to spend a day at one of the Disney parks.




Oh well...there will be plenty of other trips to go on and I'm sure Jim and I will have a fun filled (LONG!) weekend.

Have a great day!!

3 comments:

Nik_TheGreek said...

Oh, come on...
Don't look that sad... You know very well the reasons you're not going and as you've said, there'll be other trips for you to participate...

Jim said...

Awwww, look at that sad face!! Handsome face... but sad.

Just make it a good weekend!

Kyle Leach said...

John, sorry you didn't get to go on the trip, but there will be others.

The guided imagery project does sound helpful. I'm happy the class is still going well.