Session 14: Tuli

Today we started our session by taking a few deeps breaths, stretching, and taking a seat.  We had a discussion about the experience of putting our worries in a bag and keeping them somewhere safe while sleeping. Several group members felt there was no change, while for others there was a different feeling about it. M told the group how she when she had put her worries somewhere safe it was easier for her to forget about them. H3 was worried about not deliberately putting them somewhere safe because he had forgotten them in his mom’s car, but when he looked at them again later he did feel better.

After a few minutes of sharing I felt like the group was really struggling to stay engaged so we stood up and shook it all out. Most of our group was hesitant today to let loose and be silly and I asked them about this. I received feedback confirming from almost everyone that they were feeling like it had been an off day. Some were tired, feeling down, too much to do, etc. S1 shared a technique she uses when she is feeling this way, taking three very deep breaths and letting her hands rest in her lap. After a little bit of encouragement she led the group in this exercise and we created a plan for the rest of our meeting.

We then talked a little bit about the Tuli stone. H3 was able to recite the definition without even looking at his book, reminding us of the importance to trust and believe in ourselves. M seemed disappointed because she forgot to carry it with her so I asked that she try and think about a day it might have been helpful and what that would have been like. She shared a couple examples and that she wanted to work on remembering for next week. T took it skating with her one day and remembered continually checking to make sure she hadn’t lost it. She felt that having it with her helped her believe she could skate faster. S1 told us that she didn’t tell or show anyone her stone but kept it in her pocket for a day. She told us that it made her smile when she reached to see if it was there and felt like maybe it pushed her to try and be happier. H3 was very proud of his Tuli stone, sharing that he took it to the before school program he attends and presented it during share time. I love H3’s enthusiasm and openness to really dive in to Manadoob!

As I have mentioned in the past few posts the group is really into the story and always asking if we will be reading. We read chapter 20 and learned about how Zack found out he is adopted and all of the feelings that accompanied this discovery. Our group had much to say about this issue and varying opinions, which seemed to change as our discussion continued. I enjoyed this process of changing opinions because it tells me they are really hearing one another and willing to see an issue from a different perspective than their own. It was interesting to me how the focus from each youth was initially to discuss the adoption rather the lie about the birth certificate and adoption.

While we started the day’s session with a bit of an off day, the group ended up having a great session and coming together in the end.