Rite of Passage: Jennifer's Profile Piece
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Em80irWeT40
Jennifer, who has redacted her last name, is a Behavioral
Health Technician at a home called Rite of Passage. Responsible for the wellbeing
of vulnerable children who come from troubled backgrounds, ROP is a group home
scenario for high school aged kids. A family friend, I was delighted to have
envisioned her when thinking about people in my life with unique careers.
When thinking of a caretaker, it’s easy to assume a nursing
home or a foster home, but what Jen does is different. I was inspired to
interview her, since her position is rather unique. The questions I had in mind,
such as what inspired her to pursue such a job, what memorable experiences she’s
had, and what insights she’s gained about herself, drove the interview.
Dealing with children is by no means the most unique experience
a person can have- whether you’re a parent or teacher. However, being part of
troubled children’s lives is an experience made all the more unique by the fact
they are vulnerable and have disabilities. Jen has already had three children
with pasts of their own.
I asked what prompted her to seek out such a position, as
most people don’t just waddle into it. Empathy was the gist. “I’ve always had a
sweet spot for people I feel are vulnerable,” she said. “Some of the things
these kids have had to go through, I can’t. I just want to give them a sense of
normalcy in this wacky world.” Having also worked in nursing homes, Jen has had
a great deal of experience caretaking, and out of all of the occupations she’s
had throughout the years, she says caretaking has been the most fulfilling. I
asked her what concerns she had moving forward with the job. Her concerns were
simply that she didn’t know if she would do a good enough job. “The elderly have
lived their lives; these kids have barely lived theirs. I want to be positive
to and for them.”
I asked if there were any experiences that stuck out to her.
“I can’t share their name, but they’re a big Legend of Zelda fan, which my kids
also love. I have a keychain of one of the logos, and we talked about it. He’s
something of a friend now, and he’s endearing.” Jen says she hasn’t had any
particularly bad experiences per se, but this resident in particular moved her.
“All of the kids are sweet, some take time to open up, but they all have big
hearts.”
Another part of Jen’s job is using her experiences to
cooperate with the kids. I’ve personally never known her to be a particularly
strict or authoritative person, and I think she extends this quality to her
line of work. Often times when conflicts arise between her and the kids, or
between the other kids, she claims to have a way of navigating it that is
neither submissive or overly strict. “I just use empathy. A kid wants to run
away? Why yell at them and tell them why it’s a dumb idea? They just want to
feel listened to.” Her entire viewpoint is to neither be just a friend or a
guardian, but a bit of both- always trying to see other perspectives to the
best of her ability. Having had three kids, she’s had enough experience to see
what works and what doesn’t work, and she believes she’s relatively successful
when navigating the conflicts that arise between teenagers who share a common
living space.
In summary, Jen has been enjoying her position thoroughly
and the experience has been very positive for her. A point she repeated
throughout the interview is that her work feels meaningful- she isn’t just busy
for the sake of being busy, these are people she is legitimately invested in.
Jennifer is more than happy to make her livelihood based on the satisfaction of
helping others, a philosophy she’s carried throughout her life.
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