Saturday, October 6, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
WAFS Burn Camp
Respect and Integrity.
Those were the words on the agenda when I set out to talk to the WAFS 2007 Burn Camp participants aged 13-17. Such strong words, but they can mean so many different things to people depending on your family’s values, your location, your culture and your experiences. Our goal was to get everybody on the same page.
So we started with this question… “What would respect look like at camp?” The answers were a lesson for all of us…burn survivor or not. Below are the paraphrased words of some amazing kids with courageous voices.
"Please be patient with me. I can’t always do things as quickly as other people. I am missing some fingers. I still want to do it myself, but I need your patience."
"Encourage me. Sometimes I get frustrated that things aren’t as easy for me as others, or when I am trying something new and don’t get it right away. I need people to tell me that they appreciate how hard I am trying and the determination I am showing."
"Include everyone. There shouldn’t be cliques of girls and boys. Everyone should get along with everyone. This is the one place we should fit in no matter what."
"Have a sense of humor. We all mess up. Let’s try to laugh it off, instead of getting mad."
"Instead of assuming that I am saying something to be mean, ask me about it. Where I come from, we just might talk differently. I might think I am being funny, and you might get hurt. Just tell me so I can fix it."
"Respect everyone’s things. If you want to use something ask."
"I want hugs. (laughter from the group) No, I am serious! I want hugs!"
For forty-five minutes, I truly felt surrounded by beauty. Some of us wear our scars on the outside, some on the inside and some of us have both. What these articulate, inspiring teens taught me, is we all basically want the same things. Healing, in any form, starts with empathy, honesty, a little bit of humor, and a lot of respect.
Those were the words on the agenda when I set out to talk to the WAFS 2007 Burn Camp participants aged 13-17. Such strong words, but they can mean so many different things to people depending on your family’s values, your location, your culture and your experiences. Our goal was to get everybody on the same page.
So we started with this question… “What would respect look like at camp?” The answers were a lesson for all of us…burn survivor or not. Below are the paraphrased words of some amazing kids with courageous voices.
"Please be patient with me. I can’t always do things as quickly as other people. I am missing some fingers. I still want to do it myself, but I need your patience."
"Encourage me. Sometimes I get frustrated that things aren’t as easy for me as others, or when I am trying something new and don’t get it right away. I need people to tell me that they appreciate how hard I am trying and the determination I am showing."
"Include everyone. There shouldn’t be cliques of girls and boys. Everyone should get along with everyone. This is the one place we should fit in no matter what."
"Have a sense of humor. We all mess up. Let’s try to laugh it off, instead of getting mad."
"Instead of assuming that I am saying something to be mean, ask me about it. Where I come from, we just might talk differently. I might think I am being funny, and you might get hurt. Just tell me so I can fix it."
"Respect everyone’s things. If you want to use something ask."
"I want hugs. (laughter from the group) No, I am serious! I want hugs!"
For forty-five minutes, I truly felt surrounded by beauty. Some of us wear our scars on the outside, some on the inside and some of us have both. What these articulate, inspiring teens taught me, is we all basically want the same things. Healing, in any form, starts with empathy, honesty, a little bit of humor, and a lot of respect.
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