For those who have been following Gee’s story, here’s Part 3.
Gee is the real life story of a young adult I worked with some time ago who has now given me permission to tell her compelling story. I hope that you are able to get a flavour of the intensity of working with young adults. Mostly, however, I hope you enjoy getting to know Gee as much as I did.
You can also catch up on Part 1 and Part 2
Year 12
It was a pleasant summer morning and I was trying to make excuses as to why I shouldn’t clean the house. Of course, it wasn’t long before I picked up my phone, assuming.of course, there would be urgent messages to attend to. I scrolled through my emails and straight away my eye was drawn to an email from Lisa Scargill, the Inclusion Manager at Gee’s School. The mail was entitled simply “News”. I opened it and started to read.
“Gee asked me to email you… all GCSE’s passed… B’s and C’s… accepted to 6th Form”
“Wow” I said out loud, “She did it!”
The determination I always knew existed inside of Gee had done it’s job and against the odds she had made it. She had made it really difficult for herself but she had made it.
On my first day back at school after the summer holidays, there was a message for me in reception. Gee had requested to see me. Great! I thought. She probably wants to share her exciting news with me.
The difference in Gee was striking. Not just physically; she had changed her image and was, of course, no longer wearing school uniform. There was something else, a fire had started to burn inside of her and it showed in her demeanour.
The long, dark hair had been chopped into a neat bob which sat on her shoulders. It now glistened a warm brown at the roots, fading to almost white at the tips. The never-ending eyelashes were swept with black mascara, intensifying those burning brown eyes which now appeared to be almost black with a shimmer of gold glinting through them. Gee’s pale skin was make-up free and a few gentle freckles danced across her nose, making her seem younger somehow than she looked. Gee’s pale rose lips were free of lipstick, only serving to further intensify those eyes.
Gee sat down in her usual closed and guarded manner, her coat rolled up and placed on her lap revealing her independent choice of clothing. High-waisted trousers which ended a few inches above her ankle revealed black converse trainers and a black t-shirt completed the look. Gee reminded me of one of those European girls you see who seem to effortlessly ooze something.
Gee’s mouth contorted as she tried to stifle a smile. She waited for me to speak first.
“Well, hello Miss 6th Former!” I stood and bowed to her. Gee started to laugh.
“I know! Can you believe it? My Dad is so proud of me. He’s already started telling me off though and saying I need to work really hard.”
“Your Dad is right”
“Apparently, if go to Uni, I’ll be the first person in my family to go”
“That’s amazing Gee. You deserve it, you pulled it out of the bag at the last moment. You nearly gave us a heat attack mind, but you did it and well done”
“Thank you, I couldn’t have done it without you” I’m not sure why but I always get fidgety when clients say this to me. I believe that they should take the credit as, in the end, they have done the hard bit. It also triggers my anxiety around them becoming too attached to me.
“You could, and you did”
“Can I still see you?”
“Do you need to?”
“Dunno. It’s just, well, it would feel weird not seeing you and what if something happens?”
“Here’s a plan then, you can pop and see me at break or lunchtime and if you need to see me again or you start struggling, we can talk about it then. How does that sound?”
I could see that Gee wasn’t totally happy with the arrangement, but I felt it was important for her to at least try and see how she got on.
“But I can see you if I need to?”
“Yes”
“Ok, thank you again” Gee gathered her belongings slowly and opened the door. She turned back to face me, “You know you’ll never get rid of me!” She laughed and left.
I couldn’t help feeling there was still something. Despite Gee’s change, there was still a heaviness that sat behind her eyes and held her back in more ways than one. I really hoped that Gee’s new found confidence was the beginning of a change and not a fortunate blip.
If you’re enjoying Gee’s Story check out Parts 1 and 2 below and also some further reading
Gee – A real life story – Part 2
Attachment-Do we really have a generation of Velcro kids?
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