I have a wonderful student named Bruce. I'm really concerned about him though, because he doesn't seem to have a clue as to what he wants to do with himself. There's definitely something going on in his life that has been distracting him from pursuing his education.
As a mother, I've learned to be perceptive when it comes the communicative ways of the male species. I can see that something's going on in his world. At this very moment, he's using my desk phone to make phone calls. He's such a sweet guy, but there's some sort of gang activities that he's either a part of or has witnessed recently. It's interesting to hear his conversation because he calls EVERYBODY that he's been talking to on the phone "nigga".
He had been absent for about a week or so and I was becoming very concerned about him. I had been asking the administration about his well being and if anyone had heard from him or his family. No one had seemed to make any contact with him until his stepfather paid a visit to the school. I actually had the opportunity to meet him when I stopped by the office to get some bus cards for my students. His stepfather asked me, "Do you know Bruce?" "Yes!", I exclaimed as I extended my hand to shake his. The nice man told me, "I'm his father...uh, stepfather". The look of concern in his eyes almost brought me to tears because I could somehow feel his pain. He then held his head down and said, "I've been really worried about him. His mother is crazy and he's been staying with her for the past few weeks or so." I told him how much I enjoyed having Bruce in my class and also expressed that I really missed him and was equally concerned. Then his stepfather looked me in the eyes and said, "He's really a good kid."
I had an extensive conversation with Bruce (well as extensive a conversation as you can have with a low key, relatively shy young man). He had expressed to me that he was considering "just giving up". My question to him was why. He didn't know. Then I asked what he would do with himself if he just stopped coming to school, to which he replied, "I'd just get a job or something and just chill". He told me that he used to play football and basketball, but stopped. He also used to cut hair but he stopped that too. When I asked him why he stopped all these activities, he told me that it took a lot of time and that he wasn't getting paid to do any of it. I then inquired about if he was getting paid now that he wasn't doing any of those activities, to which he replied and chuckled, "yeah."
I have quite a few concerns about him because he's so bright. He's not really motivated to do much of anything accept "chill" and I can't help but wonder what will become of him if he decides to do things his way. As an African American mother of two African American young men, I understand what types of things young males CAN get involved in. Fortunately for me, my boys were never really attracted to the fast life because they were ultimately concerned about how I would react to it...and their consequences from me IF they chose the less undesirable path. I look at Bruce and see so much potential. He's really focused WHEN he comes to school and he's really good with History, English, and Government.
One of the last things I heard him say before leaving the classroom tonight is that he was meeting someone that was going to beat up someone else. That doesn't sound good. I want the best for him and he's given me something to really think about...how do I help motivate my students and help them realize their potential? There's something to be said about students that just don't want to be bothered and don't want to listen to wisdom, but there's also something to be said about someone that's seemingly crying out for help and just wants someone to listen.
I'm listening, Bruce. Ms. Sample's listening...
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