ACA MEMBER BLOGS

I have often thought about what inspires people. I’m a quote user. I search and search for extended periods of time if I want to use a quote for a painting, or a birthday craft project, or just to have a discussion with a client sometimes. It has to fit, it has to be inspirational.

It's inevitable. I'm on social media or out and about and I see memes, fun graphics, handbags, and even t-shirts with odes to the sacrifices and hard work that nurses, teachers, police, and social workers put in. The thanks and self-congratulations for these professions are everywhere.

I am traveling through open fields in south France, St. Etienne, Le Puy-en-Velay, Macon. My chest feels expansive, free as I slowly inch my way through a portion of El Camino de Santiago, this ancient pilgrimage route stretching across the long and curvy body of Europe, ending in Santiago de Compostela in the north-west part of Spain.

Life is full of surprises. You think you know someone because they are family but often times, one finds surprising details about one’s parents, siblings, even grandparents. I was talking to my mother the other day and she shared an incident from her life with me that I did not know before.

It happened. Nearly two months ago. It really did. I graduated. Three years of intense studying and writing many papers to earn my MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Rhode Island College.

On July 4th our family attended a local fireworks show to celebrate our country’s independence and freedom. Initially, we were not planning to go anywhere as I have recently injured my left knee playing soccer and we were going to celebrate by watching some fireworks on the TV.

I admit that as a counselor I have been more focused on suicidal teens. Now, I wonder how many counselors are in my boat? Recently, I have been working with a parent of a teenager who is suicidal. This has opened my eyes to an entire population I realized I had never considered.

I struggled a lot this week. I couldn’t think of what to write about and that usually happens when I have too much going on in my mind. I thought of writing about feminism, and then I heard this fantastic TedTalk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

This weekend was a cleaning weekend. When the semester is on and one thing after another piles up, sometimes things like getting rid of stuff I don’t need any more or donating things (usually clothes) I don’t use anymore (or at all) gets put on the back burner. The back burner is my favorite place but it sometimes topples over and then I have a mess.

As counselors, we constantly are put in emotionally charged situations that our clients are trusting enough to share with us. This can take its toll and leave us feeling as exhausted and spent just like the poor duckling trying to swim to the shore.