Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Beverly Hills What A Thrill......

If you recognize the title of my post, you know that it comes from one of the greatest movies of the 80's.....TROOP BEVERLY HILLS!!!! Shelley Long is a Beverly Hills diva who decides to become the troop mother for her daughter's girl scout troop. She learns the ups and downs of mothering (yes ma'am) and camping (no thank you!) in a two hour time span- all the while, winning back her ex-husband who left her for a younger floozy!! How can a movie get any better than that?!?!?
Well, tonight, I had my own Troop Beverly Hills moment. It was our first meeting for our Girl Scout troop out at the Department of Juvenile Justice (hereafter known as DJJ). I have 8 girls in my Wednesday troop and tonight, I was walking into a lion's den ya'll, and that's putting it mildly.
Let me back up- I am not complaining- I CHOSE this- this is my placement that I believe was God's divine intervention in my life. Every year, we get to pick our top placement choices (and is then delegated by the upper board members which one you end up with) which is where you will serve out your year in the Junior League. Well, apparently, I think I have all this free time on my hands and I bit off a big ole' hunk of this Charleston Chew (it's a candy bar ya'll) and I chose Behind the Fences: Girls Scouts and DJJ. It's a brand new project to the league this year so there is no template; therefore, this has become my baby. I, along with my co-chairs, are sculpting this baby from the get go......so fast forward 6 months......here we are starting the troop meetings.....
Tonight I walk in ready to Carpe Diem! with all of these girls. We were so proud of our meeting and the curriculum that we had planned out!.....needless to say, they were unmotivated, unimpressed, lackadaisical, and, to put it mildly, downright sabotaging to all of our efforts. These girls were so hard and so mad and just so p***** off at the world. I was totally in my element. If not before, God was truly calling down to me at this moment and letting me shine through. This is my dream. I feel as though I have a gift for "breaking" the weary. First, I was asked if my teeth were fake (PRICELESS) then I was asked how many babies (my body may look like more, but sadly, only one to show for it!) I had and how did I keep myself looking so young...(even though I am only 24, this was a huge compliment). There were several who told me my craft and activity were stupid and they weren't tasting my snack because it looked nasty and gross....however, by the end, I had all the girls coloring and crafting and even more importantly all of them trying my snack which was "ants on a log"...how can you beat that?!?! The fact that I had broken through to these precious angels brought tears to my eyes. I cried the whole way home. These girls, although appearing tough and unenthused, truly longed and yearned for my attention and praise. And there is no one in this world that wants to give it to them more than I do. Tonight I realized that not all us have an unconditionally loving household- not all of us have a household period- I came home tonight and squeezed my bug so much tighter and kissed Raymond that much harder. I know how blessed I am and I can't wait to get back to those girls and love them that much more. I feel so amazingly honored to have been given this ability and position and I look forward to learning so much from these girls who have so much to give.....
I look forward to giving you more updates on all of our progress!!!

Love the one you're with,
Charlotte

4 comments:

  1. Aw, I love your post. It's so true. I had internships at schools with children with severe emotional and behavioral disorders. At first it was so frustrating because I felt like they hated me and they kept their guard up, but soon enough they let their guards down and let me in. Some really took to me after a while. It's true that children really the love and attention, but first have to push you away to see if you care enough to keep trying. It is so rewarding like you said. That's an awesome thing for you to do. They are so lucky to have someone like you in their life who cares about them...and they know it too :)

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  2. Charlotte, this is GREAT! I didn't know you were getting into this. I don't have anything to compare this to, but I can only imagine that sense of accomplishment and fulfillment this must give you! Those girls are lucky to have you in their lives!!

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  3. That is wonderful! I know you will do a great job! It can only go up from here!

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  4. Stop by my blog because I have awarded you the Honest Scrap Award!!

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