Social Work Observations

by Chelsea Brooks

I'm not sure where to start 

Not certain where's the end 

I've got some observations

and some reservations....

Observation Number 1

Take care of yourself 

Which seems complicated to do when all I can think about is...did that little girl sleep tonight, or did she stay up tortured by the images of her rapist 

Number 2 

Competence is necessary 

Of course I already knew this 

But apparently in some it doesn't exist 

Competence means knowledge it means understanding 

Competence is knowing that this family didn't magically appear with issues 

No, its been generations, cycles of people whose one commonality, other than DNA, is struggle

Struggle of addiction, struggle of poverty, struggle of depression, struggle to be happy 

Competence means understanding that policies are also barriers to real change sometimes 

Which leads me to observation Number 3 

Policy 

It's complicated, it's bureaucratic 

It's sometimes diplomatic. 

It's the reason we have registered sex offenders 

But also the reason we had severe DFCS budget cuts 

It's why my client can never seem to have enough money to provide for all three of her children 

Reservations? 

Am I cut out for this? Can I really evoke change?

Can I handle hearing about another 12-year-old being abused?Can I really watch another child cry while they're separated from the mother that beat him unconscious?

Maybe it’s my passion to heal those who are broken 

Maybe it's because for years I listened on the phone while someone I loved told me about what HE did to her over and over 

Day after day

From age 10 until I'm not even sure when it ended 

Maybe it's because I have my own story and troubles that I wish someone could've saved me from 

But when I look in a child's eyes and see that longing for happiness 

That longing for normalcy

I know this is where I belong 

Here in social work

With the good, the bad, the ugly 

The unknown 

I can't let the fear of failure dominate me 

I have too many lives to change

Chelsea Brooks is currently obtaining her Master of Social Work from the University of Georgia. She is passionate about writing and performing poetry in her spare time. Upon graduation, she plans to work with sexually abused children and hopes to help those survivors express themselves through the art of poetry.