“The Seven Storey Mountain” by Thomas Merton Essay Example for Free

â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† by Thomas Merton Essay Introduction Thomas Merton went through a significant conversion in his youth and turned into a prominent Catholic author and spiritualist. His autobiography â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† discusses his life from childhood to adult and the conversion to Roman Catholicism and entry into a monastery.   The title and the sequence of this book were enthused by Dante’s â€Å"The Divine Comedy†. Merton’s autobiography is divided into three parts: The first describes his life without God (â€Å"Hell†); the second, the beginning of his search for God (â€Å"Purgatory†); and the third, his baptism and entrance into a monastic order (â€Å"Paradise†). Discussion Thomas Merton’s autobiographical work â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† marked the true beginning of his outstanding literary career. Seven years before, he came into the Trappist abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky. Inspired by his abbot; Dom Frederic Dunne, Merton wrote his biography in order to explain his conversion from a non-believing Anglican into a transformed to Catholicism who left a promising educational career in order to join a secluded monastery. (Merton, 121) In the last several years of Merton’s life, he wrote comprehensively on such varied subjects like warfare and tranquility, the civil movement, racial and social discrimination, Eastern and Western monasticism, and the associations between conventional Christian values and the contemporary world. Merton divided his autobiography into three sections. The first part deals with the years between his childhood and the physical collapse he suffered in 1936. The second section explains his extensive period of convalescence, his transformation to Catholicism in 1938, and his choice in late 1939 to join a institution. The last part discusses his views previous to and subsequent to his entrance in the Gethsemani Monastery. The heading of Merton’s autobiography depicts the seven levels in Dante’s Purgatory. (Zuercher, 67) The celestial elegance allowed him to shift from the lowest to the highest degree of divine knowledge. The book â€Å"Seven Storey Mountain† explains in a clear and unassuming way Merton’s steady transformation from a conceited and indifferent youngster into a keen and mature believer who retrieved satisfaction as a meditative preacher. From the time of its publication in 1948, the book â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† has affected many readers in a positive way. (Merton, 129) The author in the starting of the book â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† describes himself as a captive of a worldly and selfish world. This evaluation of the new world to a reformatory has struck most of the readers as extreme. The well-known British writer Evelyn Waugh published a well modified story of â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† in the title Elected Silence in 1949. Waugh removed what he thought as the overstatement in both Merton’s way and his judgment of the world out of his monastery. Even though Waugh improved many parts of the text in Merton’s book, Merton thought that the polished and sophisticated way chosen by Waugh could not appropriately put across to the audience his intuitive response to his knowledge before and after his transformation. Merton wanted the readers of â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† to know that his life would have been worthless if he had not got the gift of belief from God; his conversion had drastically transformed his perception of the world. The book â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† has been favorably compared to such classic autobiographies as those of Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, Saint Augustine, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Such praise of Merton’s autobiography is entirely appropriate because he also analyzed with almost brutal honesty the weaknesses and strengths of his character. Merton never attempted to mislead his readers by presenting himself in an overly positive light. His subjective analysis of his own life never seems artificial. His consistent attempt to understand the true motivation for his moral choices persuades his readers both to respect Merton’s perception of the world and to appreciate the universal elements in Merton’s spiritual and psychological growth: The chronological structure of this autobiography enables the reader to understand the gradual changes which caused Thomas Merton to convert to Roman Catholicism and then to enter a cloistered monastery. (Zuercher, 71) Thomas Merton had a difficult childhood. He was born near the Spanish border in the French village of Prades on January 31, 1915. His parents were both artists, and they moved frequently. His mother, an American, would die in 1921 and his father, a New Zealander, would die nearly ten years later. Merton spent his childhood and adolescence in France, England, Bermuda, and the United States but never felt at home anywhere. The artificiality and selfishness of modern society depressed him. Because of his profound sense of alienation, Merton yielded too many self-destructive urges: After he joined the University of Cambridge in 1933, he began to drink heavily and then fathered a child out of wedlock.   His previous mistress and their son both would die during a Nazi air attack on London. During writing his autobiography, Merton thought of a friend from Cambridge who had committed suicide. He was certain that only the love of God had sheltered him from the same destiny and that he had achieved nothing constructive all this time he had spent in England. He went to America in 1934 and then never came back to Europe. In the first section of â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain†, the misery and isolation which many people experience after the dreadfulness of the Holocaust and the devastation of World War II is strongly and emotively expressed. In the second section of â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain†, Merton disclosed that he required celestial grace and the ethical support of his friends both in order to nurture spiritually. Once Merton reached America, he registered at Columbia University, where he met two professors, Mark Van Doren and Dan Walsh, who intensely persuaded his personal growth. Van Doren trained Merton to think seriously, to give importance to truth for itself, and to disbelieve all types of baseless reasoning. Sarcastically, Merton had never planned to meet Van Doren. In the commencement of his junior year at Columbia, Merton went to the wrong classroom by mistake. (Zuercher, 81) When Van Doren came in and started talking, Merton decided to take that course in its place and gave up history course which he actually wanted to take. Merton thought of this unexpected accident as part of a divine plan to help him understand the gift of faith. Van Doren, who was a Protestant, became one of Merton’s best friends, corresponding with him for years and often visiting him at Gethsemani. Even though he did not share Merton’s religious beliefs, Van Doren strongly supported both his conversion to Catholicism and his decision to enter the monastery. Whenever he had personal problems, Merton knew that Van Doren would be there to help and guide him. Another close friend from Columbia was Robert Lax. He encouraged Merton to take a course on medieval Scholasticism which Dan Walsh, a visiting professor of philosophy from Sacred Heart College, was to teach at Columbia. Walsh taught Merton that no opposition need exist between the acceptance of traditional Christian beliefs and the philosophical search for truth. After he became a Catholic, Merton spoke to Walsh of his interest in the priesthood, and Walsh suggested the Trappist monastery in Gethsemani. At first, Merton rejected this suggestion, but within two years he would become a Trappist. Most of his friends at Columbia were not Catholic. Nevertheless, they attended his baptism in 1938. Eleven years later, his Columbia friends would travel to Gethsemani for his ordination. Friendship enriched Merton’s life and gave him the inner peace which he needed in order to accept the gift of faith. (Merton, 135) Whatever their religious beliefs; his readers can identify with Merton’s thoughtful analysis of the close link between friendship and the search for happiness. The third part of â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† describes his reasons for entering the Cistercian monastery and the great joy which active meditation brought to him there. After considering a few religious orders, he at first left the confined life. Nonetheless, after many conversations with his friends from Columbia and two retreats in Cistercian monasteries, Merton drew a conclusion that only the meditative life would allow him to grow spiritually. He wrote to Gethsemani and was accepted for what he was: a scrape whom the free gift of faith had transformed into a fervent believer. At Gethsemani, Merton would experience for the first time the pleasures of true emotional and intellectual satisfaction. When Merton reached Gethsemani on December 10, 1941, he saw the words Pax intrantibus (peace to those who enter) inscribed over the entrance gate. In Merton’s mind, this Latin greeting defined the paradoxical nature of the monastic life. The numerous and often-petty rules in a contemplative order are in fact designed to bring monks inner peace by freeing them from the artificiality of the materialistic world. (Zuercher, 82). Therefore, the peace he wished to acquire was the wisdom to accept everything as part of the divine plan. Yet this trust in divine providence would soon be severely tested. Only a few months after his arrival at Gethsemani, he was called to his abbot’s office. Merton’s brother, John Paul, then a sergeant in the British army, had come to the abbey in order to receive religious instruction, wanting to be baptized as soon as possible. By a curious coincidence, Father James Fox, who would serve as Thomas’ abbot and spiritual mentor from 1948 until early 1968, was asked to prepare John Paul for baptism. As his newly baptized brother was walking away from the monastery, Thomas suddenly realized that they â€Å"would never see each other on earth again.† Within a year the recently married John Paul was killed in action. Thomas coped with his grief first by praying and then by writing â€Å"Sweet Brother, If I Do Not Sleep.† His complete acceptance of divine benevolence persuaded Thomas that John Paul’s â€Å"unhappy spirit† had finally been called â€Å"home† by God. Only a brief epilogue, â€Å"Meditation of a Poor Man in Solitude† follows this powerful analysis of the last meeting between Thomas Merton and his only sibling. (Giroux, 145)    Reasons for Conversion Merton’s religious themes are centered in pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic spirituality and theology, but much of his writing concerns universal Christian ideas. A chief theme is the importance of grace. Life is empty without God and offers only empty pleasures and inescapable woes. Modern society enslaves its members with distractions and material goods; self-sacrifice can help people distance themselves from the false promises of the world. According to Merton, only through the sanctifying grace of God, which is the full participation in God’s life that supports us to good actions, peace and happiness can be found. (Merton, 147) Natural goodness is transformed by grace to bring us and others closer to God. Grace thus saves us and allows us to become our best selves. As Merton experienced it, conversion was preceded by grace-filled moments provided by good people, reading and contemplation, and the inspiration of an â€Å"inner voice† that directed him to carry out his thoughts. However, even baptism was not sufficient for true conversion. After his baptism, Merton continued acting as he had previously. Only after a while did he realize that conversion means conversion of every moment of each day, of turning toward God in thought and action constantly. Conversion means disregarding the concerns of the world, even denying pleasures to one’s self. (Zuercher, 87)   Conversion means abandoning the self to the will of God; understanding this led Merton to decide to join a monastery and become a priest. True happiness and true freedom come from giving all to God. The giving is easy and the rewards are great, says Merton. While this involves a kind of loss of self, in the end it allows for growth of the real self in God. Conclusion Merton’s life and that of the narrator of â€Å"The Divine Comedy† followed a same sequence. That narrator begins the poem in the middle of his life, and Merton wrote â€Å"The Seven Storey Mountain† in the middle of his life; he died at the untimely age of fifty-three. Works Cited Giroux, Robert. The Seven Storey Mountain. 50th anniversary ed. Introduction by. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1998. pg 145. Merton, Thomas. The Seven Storey Mountain. Harvest Books; Anv edition (1999). ISBN-10: 0156010860. pg 98-210. Zuercher, Suzanne. Merton: An Enneagram Profile. Notre Dame, Ind.: Ave Maria Press, 2001. pg 58-99.

Effect of Communication on Practitioners and Service Users

Effect of Communication on Practitioners and Service Users Standing still enough to absorb the emotional impact of (service users) experiences is something that allows the movement hidden beneath the frozen state of psychological hypothermia to emerge in a tolerable way at the right time.† (Kohli, 2007, p. 180). This paper will address the relevance of Kohli’s statement above to the discussion on the effective communication with accompanied minors. The paper will first define the term â€Å"unaccompanied minors†. It will then provide a definition of communication, then identify and examine its main theoretical perspectives. The paper will unpack the meaning of Kholi’s quotation by advancing a discussion of the importance of timing when working with unaccompanied minors and the intricacies involved in navigating the sometimes harrowing and emotional experiences of unaccompanied minors. The paper will also examine the issue of silence and how this reflects a state of being frozen in time with unaccompanied minors and will interrogate methodologies for delving below these issues, in a timely manner while ensuring that the service feels safe revealing their often locked away emotions. All these factors will be examined in the context of how communication can impact both the practitioner and the service user and how managing each factor effectively is essential to unlocking hidden feelings, emotions and trauma from which unaccompanied minors may suffer. The paper will draw on contemporary literature to empirically ground its arguments. Both the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) defines unaccompanied as: â€Å"under 18 years of age or under a countrys legal age of majority, are separated from both parents, and are not with and being cared for by a guardian or other adult who by law or custom is responsible for them. This includes minors who are without any adult care, minors who are entirely on their own, minors who are with minor siblings but who, as a group, are unsupported by any adult responsible for them, and minors who are with informal foster families.† (United Nations: 2007) More recently, there have been a plethora of studies examining the psychosocial and day to day needs after they arrive in Western countries. Communication is said to be a difficult concept to pin down by way of definition because of its many complexities, forms and application to everything. For the purposes of this paper, the definition provided by Fiske (1990:2) that communication is â€Å"social interaction through messages†, provides a good starting point to examine the concept in relation to unaccompanied minors. Thompson (2003) contends that the social aspect of communication is vital to consider because individuals interact within a social space and the nature of this communication dictates the nature of a relationship or how that relationship develops or breaks down. Thompson (2003) navigates various theoretical model of communication by drawing on the work of other scholars. He identifies Shannon and Weaver’s 1949 definition of communication which locates 3 elements: The transmitter (person who starts communication), noise (the actual message communicated, and the receiver (the person who the message is communicated to). This definition has received ample criticism for oversimplifying a difficult concept wherein communication is not always transmitted by noise but also through silence and body language. In addressing these omissions, the semiotics model was advanced as an alternative. In this model, communication is described by Cobley (2001) as a form of semiosis which is concerned with the exchange of any messages whatsoever: from the molecular code and the immunological properties of cells all the way through to vocal sentences.† This definition introduces other aspects rather than the spoken word into the communication discourse and Miller (1973) articulates that â€Å"communication includes not only the study of spoken communication between people, but also the many kinds of unspoken communication that go on constantly when people interact.† In this respect, communication also encompasses culture, because culture determines shared norms and values, language and ultimately these norms affect how information is communicated or transmitted. Thompson (2003) draws on Pierre Bordieau’s concept of cultural capital based on the strength of power bases, to explain ho w culture and power can interact to determine how information is understood and communicated, because it informs the semantics of language and the formation of identity. The identification of language as a prominent variable in any communication discourse is inescapable because as Thompson (2003) states, language does not only reflect reality, but it also constructs reality. This fact is elucidated when certain words or actions communicate a task, or certain actions communicate joy, distress or uncertainty, as is postulated by the speech act theory. Similarly, identity is informed by cultural norms and values, and determines how individuals view themselves and how they relate to others. It is this connection between culture, identity, language and power which informs the foundations of the discussion on how practitioners can cut through the difficulties of intercultural communication barriers to assist usually traumatized unaccompanied minors. Intercultural communication skills in the social work discipline, is fraught with difficulties. Husbands (2000) maintains that the various biographical routes and stories of practitioners does interact in the social space of service users and can affect how information is communication based on how trust is fostered when communicating to service users that difference will be accepted and not judged. Kohli (2006) deftly describes the vulnerable unaccompanied child who arrives in a new country and who is reticent about divulging details to practitioners. He, alongside other scholars (Kohli and Mather: 2003; Beek and Schofield: 2004) observes that unaccompanied children often remain silent, or emotionally closed about their past. He writes that such children have usually been told over and over by others to remain quiet about themselves in order to keep safe. Kohli (2001, 2006, 2007) insists that it is imperative that social work practitioners gain skills that enable them to probe the past of unaccompanied asylum children, in order to truly understand their needs. Kohli recognizes that demands to meet targets faced by modern day practitioners, may interfere with the time they need to build trust and safely pry open the thoughts of unaccompanied minors. In light of this, the nature of their silence and the impact their experiences may have had on them must be explored, before addressing how social workers should â€Å"time† their intervention to open communication and prompt life histories from unaccompanied minors. The silence displayed by unaccompanied minors should not be immediately adjudged to be because they are hiding harmful secrets. In fact, scholars such as Finkenauer et al (2001), argues that the keeping of secrets are normal adolescence developmental characteristics. However, the literature on silences among refugee children often points to explanations of fear and the silencing effects of war on children. Psychological studies (Melzak: 1992) contend that children often bury extreme hurt, pain or loss in order to survive, some to the extent that they can forget some events or the sequence of events as a defense mechanism. The risk of acting out buried emotions in a harmful way, compels many practitioners and scholars to argue for methodologies to unlock these stories which according to Kohler’s quotation, presented at the beginning of this paper, may be in a â€Å"frozen state of psychological hypothermia†, wherein they are unable to communicate their hidden pain. Papad oupolos (2002) posits that this frozen state could be purposely imposed to assist in healing and may be necessary to allow affected children the space to reflect, make sense of and accept before being able to move on successfully. Kohli (2006) therefore views this silence as both â€Å"burdensome and protective†, and it requires a skillful practitioner to know when to encourage unaccompanied minors to open up. Krause (1997) and Rashid (1996) both warn against social workers rushing to conclusions about unaccompanied minors based on their cultural backgrounds and what is known about their country of origin. Focusing on organizational targets and not the clients needs first, may result in the practitioner missing the cultural contexts of the minors’ experiences, within specific times and risks simplifying complex information that may be transmitted without adequate reflection on the communication experience overtime. In order to determine when it is appropriate to prompt for hidden information or stories from unaccompanied minors, social workers must recognize that such children may be trying to be accepted within a new culture while suffering a loss from their own (Kohli and Mather: 2003). Therefore, social workers must be observant and reflective (Schà ¶n: 1987, 1983) to determine when a child is assimilated enough and trusting of the practitioner service user relationship to revea l any hidden stories of their past lives. Richman (1989) also reminds that many unaccompanied children are very resilient because of their experiences and they may be busy trying to figure out their next move, or how to survive within a new environment and culture, or thinking about their asylum status, than they are interested in reliving past experiences which do not in their estimation contribute to their present survival. Consequently, practitioners are encouraged to engage in â€Å"therapeutic witnessing† (Kohli and Mather: 2003) rather than feeling the need to wring past experiences from unaccompanied minors. In drawing on Blackwell and Melzak (2000), Kohli and Mather (2003: 206) states: â€Å"In essence, workers are asked not to become action orientated helpers in the face of ‘muck and bullets’, but stay still enough to bear the pain of listening to stories of great loss as they emerge at a pace manageable for the refugee.† While Kohli acknowledges that it is difficult for a practitioner to remain still and allow a â€Å"discovery by drip† process to unfold with the refugee, he maintains that it allows refugees to â€Å"exorcise their demons and ghosts in the process of self-recovery† (Kholi and Mathers: 2003). This does not diminish the level of practical support that workers should offer to refugees, in fact it is through assisting to order their lives, that they will also make sense of their past and be more willing or open to sharing information about themselves. However, if and when refugees begin to share their experiences, practitioners must be versed on skills to encourage such interaction and should also be cognizant of their own reactions and judgement which can also be communicated to the client nonverbally and affect the â€Å"drip† method of divulging information. It is to these issues which this paper now turns. Relationship based interaction between service users and practitioners remain central to the core value of social work and reflect its best practice. Holloway (2003) concurs with this view by asserting that conversations between practitioner and client dictate how the trust relationship is formed and how the worker is emboldened to assist the client. In this context, a discussion on emotional intelligence (EI) and its importance to the communication process is relevant. Morrison (2007) quotes Goleman’s 1996 definition of EI as â€Å"Being able to motivate oneself and persist in the face of frustrations; to control impulse and delay gratification; to regulate one’s moods and keep distress from swamping the ability to think; to empathize and to hope.† This delayed gratification is applicable to the need for social workers to allow unaccompanied minors the space to understand themselves and their new realities while making sense of their past. It requires great empa thy and being able to perceive and identifying feelings in the self and others. Morrison (2007) links emotional intelligence and successful social work as being able to be conscious of the self while establishing good communication channels with the refugee. Morrison advises that social workers must be in tuned with their own prejudices and assumptions because many vulnerable clients such as unaccompanied minors are used to reading body language and silent communication signs to determine whether they should trust individuals. Therefore practitioners must ensure that their methods of practice reinforce good communication values rather than downplay them. One of the first methodologies used by the social work practitioner is that of assessment. Assessment frameworks in the UK give little space for the exploration of histories (Morrison: 2007). Consequently, the emotions which compel youth behaviour is often not deeply understood from unaccompanied minors, especially since they may be silent and initially provide minimal normative sketches of their past. Accurate observation during assessment will take note of feelings which may hide deeper emotions and record the moments when these windows into the past were glimpsed or sensed. Much can also be gain by the observation that expression is void of emotion, as this may also be an indicator that the unaccompanied minor realize that communication certain emotions in their language may give the practitioner space to questions their past and they may be skilled at hiding such feelings in their language and tone. If information from the refugee is sparse and void of emotion, the practitioner s hould make extra effort to be reflective in practice to ensure that their own perceptions or impressions are not being transmitted to the client. Goleman et al (2002) articulates that there is a situation of dissonance when one party feels like the other is out of touch with their feelings. The Audit Commission’s 2006 report (p.66) into the treatment of unaccompanied children, demonstrates how practitioner bias can affect the level of treatment given to refugee children: â€Å"Many unaccompanied children have multiple needs because of their experiences of separation, loss and social dislocation . . . Yet in many cases they do not receive the same standard of care routinely afforded to indigenous children in need, even though their legal rights are identical.† Practitioners must therefore guard against treating unaccompanied minors as â€Å"another client†, because the literature identifies them as being particularly in tune to all forms of communication within the interaction process, and they use this as a guide on who, when and how to trust. A vital part of the assessment is the interviewing of the unaccompanied minor. Wilson and Powell (2001: 1) maintain that â€Å"a childs thinking is dependent on a number of factors including memory, conceptual development, emotional development and language formation.† They further assert that there are three aspects to remembering information: knowledge, sequencing and prioritizing. They contend that practitioners must seek to gain all three trough safe methods when interviewing and practice patience. It is important to note their guidance that a memory may not always be told in the right sequence, and be prioritized according to the present needs of the child or in the case of this paper – the unaccompanied minor. Furthermore, they remind us that a child’s memory may not be accurate, this could be deliberately so (as already explored by Kohli: 2006), and they argue that it is up to the interviewer to use a method of questioning when appropriate to maximize the accuracy of responses. The Achieving Best Evidence in Criminal Proceedings (2007) document which provided information on interviewing children stated that interviewers must approach the interview with an open mind and that enquiries should not increase the distress of a child by allowing them to reluctantly relive bad experiences. Similarly, the 1998 Cleveland Inquiry Report suggests that: All interviews should be conducted by a professional with child interview training; Interview questions should be open-ended; There should be one and no more than two interviews for the purpose of assessment and it should not be too long; the interview should be paced by the child not the adult among others and it is recommended that the both the police and the social worker (if necessary) interview the child at the same time. These guidelines ensure that the interview adopts a child-centered approach. Another method that is advised with unaccompanied children is the phased interview approach. The phased interview approach is structured in three parts: the introduction and initial rapport establishment, the free narrative section and questioning section where the child is given space to communicate, alongside being questioned, and the closure of the interview. It is important to prepare children for the interview, through pre-interview contact to lessen any stress which may arise from being fearful of the process. Children should get ample time to consider whether they wish to share their stories or keep them locked away. Furthermore, the skill to actively listen is paramount to a social work practitioner as it not only assists with accurately observing, but it assures the child that what they are saying is being heard (Wilson and Powell: 2001). To assist in accuracy, the interviewer should reflect back the child’s responses to them for affirmation of clarification paying particular attention to maintaining neutral body language and tone while doing so (Thompson: 20 02). However, Wilson and Powell (2001) maintain that if a term is not familiar to the interviewer or seems like slang, the interviewer should make every effort to clarify its meaning with the child in order to maximize accuracy and assist in avoiding possibilities of intercultural communication. Bradford (1994) further posits that the interviewer has the responsibility to ensure the validity of the communication process by pursuing the statement validity analysis (SVA). The SVA checks that the testimony contains no contradictions or logical inconsistencies, the abundance of details, the accuracy of contextual evidence which may be verifiable, the ability to reproduce conversations and interactions and the presence of complicated obstacles. However, Davies (2006) warns that while this tool may be useful, it is not a accurate fix, particularly in the case of silent children who may choose to withhold traumatic information (Kohli: 2006). Wilhelmy and Bull (1999) argues that the use of drawings within interviews with child by practitioners should be encouraged where appropriate because it also provides assurance to the child that the interviewer is child centered. If this method is used, the interviewer must be very observant that this method does not make the child uneasy. While drawing may presents many opportunities to further question the child, the practitioner must as Kholi’s quotation suggests be extremely patient to unlock information and allow the interview to be paced by the child, thereby giving them space to trust the interviewing process. A child’s comfort with drawing, ay actually provide an opening to more difficult or painful areas and care should be taken to note and protect the child’s wellbeing and level of distress when painful information is disclosed. The use of role play and storytelling also offers unique methodologies to social workers to assist children in disclosing pain ful information. Outside of the interview process, Chamberlain (2007) recounts the use of storytelling by the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture to assist refugee children from war torn countries to unlock their deeply buried painful memories when they are ready. He quotes Sheila Melzack the centers consultant child and adolescent psychotherapist as saying: â€Å"Many are in a state of suspended animation because they do not know whether they will be forced to return home. We are trying to give them coping strategies to deal with all these issues. But instead of saying directly what they saw or did we deal with it through displacement. They can be extracted through stories which create safe arenas to talk about these issues.† Therefore, Chamberlain (2007) and Davis (1990) asserts that stories can be utilized as a therapeutic intervention method to assist unaccompanied children to recall incidents, not necessarily airing them, but developing coping strategies that assist in building resilience in a new environment. There are however, instances where unaccompanied children come from countries whose language differ from that of the receiving country. Gregory and Holloway (2005) maintain that language is used both to grant and restrict access to a society or organization. Chand (2005) identifies the lack of adequate interpreting and translation services within the UK social work sector. Chand’s research located many instance where the services of interpreters and translators were needed but they did not show, usually because of lack of resources, so they prioritise which cases they believe are more important such as more formal case conferences. Humphreys et al (1999) found that many interpreters left case conferences and assessment early, or that interviews or conferences may be rushed because of lack of resources. In light of the previous discussion on the need for social workers to be patient and allow unaccompanied minors to work through past recollections until they are in a space to s hare, this practice of rushing sessions to facilitate interpreters, is detrimental to the communication process between practitioner and the unaccompanied child and could discourage disclosure and engender trust issues. As was discussed earlier in the theoretical section of this paper, language is closely related to power and can be used to control and regulate discourses and effect social control, based on its ability to include or exclude. The client-practitioner relationship is one in which the practitioner asserts their professionalism and therefore must take great care that such imbalance of power is not misunderstood by the client or imposed on them to hinder effective communication (Gregory and Holloway: 2005). Unaccompanied children, who have suffered trauma are usually used to being victimized by relationships of power imbalances, and therefore the social worker must always recognize that the relationship with such individuals is aimed at building their resilience and capacity :to adjust to all or any part of their new environment. While keeping practice client focused, recent years have seen the introduction of numerous guidelines, new legislation and policy changes which require the adherence and commitment of the social work practitioner. Some critics (Young: 1999; Malin: 2000), debate that social work has become mediatory and managerial under modern day guidelines and stipulations which risk the developing of solid client-practitioner relationships and the development of trust. While Gregory and Holloway (2005) argue that the language of such guidelines can be interpreted as the social control of the social work profession which ultimately seeks to â€Å"fix† the meanings of grounded work with vulnerable clients to suit political agendas. Social workers must remain committed to the ethic of the profession and promote good social work values by ensuring that such language of control is not transferred from the managerial spheres to what Schà ¶n (1983) terms as the trenches of social work, that is, th e interpersonal communication with clients. It is this regard that social workers must be aware of the power of language in working with unaccompanied minors, and ensure that the practice language is not dominated by a controlling or power induced thrust, but recognizes the vulnerability of clients and their need to slowly build trust and thaw their emotions (Kohli: 2006, 2007). As with language, the relations between social work practitioners and other services, can directly affect relationship with unaccompanied minors and how they trust the professionalism of those who communicate to them that they care. The death of eight year-old Victoria Climbie presents an example of how the lack of effective communication between professional practitioners can result in harm, especially to children from foreign cultures. The Laming Report of 2003, an inquiry into Victoria’s death concluded that the young girl’s death could have been avoided if individual social workers, police officers, doctors and nurses who came into contact with the girl, had effectively responded to Victorias needs. The National Service Framework for Children and Young People (NSF) and the Common Assessment Framework (CAF), both strive to ensure the effective communication between service providers across sectors. Glenny (2005) states that: â€Å"a lot of inter-agency collaboration is not about collaborative activity as such, but about communicating effectively with regard to individual pieces of work , ensuring patchwork of individual effort in relation to a particular [case], made sense†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Ensuring proper communication between agencies when dealing with unaccompanied minors, is therefore essential to build trust in the client-practitioner relationship (Cross:2004) and to remove any doubts the minor may have that the capillaries of power that agencies appear to be, will work for their benefit and well being and not contribute to any further victimization they may have suffered. It is therefore conclusive to say that the issue of managing effective communication is absolutely essential to successful social work practice with unaccompanied minors. The paper navigated the theoretical intricacies of the concept of communication to highlight its broad nature and how culture, language, body language and even silence are powerful communication tools tapped into by both practitioner and the unaccompanied minor in establishing boundaries of trust. One of the most evident revelations of this paper, is the need for practitioners to practice patience to allow unaccompanied minors the space to unlock their hidden stories, while providing them with support for their daily needs. Furthermore, the issue of intercultural communication difficulties that lack of interpreting and translation resources can cause in fostering best practice with accompanied minors was explored and it was identified that despite the lack of resources, unaccompanied minors are better served when th ey are not rushed for their hidden experiences. Finally, the paper identified the how the language of managerial control within social work can hinder best practice, if control of power imbalance is communicated even non-verbally to unaccompanied minors, who are very attuned to detecting such relations in order to protect themselves. References Beek, M., Schofield, G. (2004) Providing a Secure Base in Long-term Foster Care. London, British Association for Adoption and Fostering. Bradford, R. (1994) developing an Objective Approach to Assessing Allegations of Sexual Abuse. Child Abuse Review, Vol. 3 (2), 93-106. Chamberlain, P. (2007) Tell it like it was. Young People Traumatised by Violence are Confronting their Past through Storytelling. Community Care, 5-11th April. Chand, A. (2005) Do You Speak English? Language Barriers in Child Protection Social Work with Minority Ethnic Families. British Journal of Social Work, Vol. 35, 807-821. Criminal Justice System (2007) Achieving Best Evidence in Criminal Proceedings. London: The Stationery Office. Cobley, P. (2001) The Routledge Companion to Semiotics and Linguistics. London: Routledge. Cross M. (2004) Children with Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties. London: Jessica Kingsley. Davis, N. (1990) Once Upon a Time: Therapeutic Stories. Nancy Davis Publications. Davis, G. (2006) Statement Validity Analysis: An Art or a Science? Commentary on Bradford. Child Abuse Review, Vol. 3 (2), 104-106. Finkenauer, C., Engels, R., Meeus, W. (2002) Keeping Secrets from Parents: Advantages and Disadvantages of Secrecy in Adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Vol. 31 (2), 123–136. Fiske, J. (1990) Introduction to Communication Studies. (2nd Edition). London: Routledge. Glenny, G. (2005) Riding the Dragon: Developing Inter-Agency Systems for Supporting Systems. Support for Learning, Vol. 20 (4), 167-175. Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R. and McKee, A. (2002) Primal Leadership, Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Gregory, M., Holloway, M. (2005) Language and the Shaping of Social Work. British Journal of Social Work, Vol. 35 (1), 37-53. Husbands, C. (2000) Recognising Diversity and Developing Skills: The Proper Role of Transcultural Communication. European Journal of Social Work, Vol. 3 (3), 225-234. Humphreys, C., Atkar, S., Baldwin, N. (1999) Discrimination in Child Protection Work: Recurring Themes in Work with Asian Families. Child and Family Social Work, Vol. 4, 283-291. Kohli, R.K.S. (2006) The Sound of Silence; Listening to What Asylum-seeking Children Say and do not Say. British Journal of Social Work, Vol. 36 (5), 707-721. Kohli, R. (2001) Social Work with Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Young People. Forced Migration Review, Vol. 12 (1), 31–33. Kohli, R. (2000) Breaking the Silence. Professional Social Work, June 2002, 6–9. Krause, I.B. (1997) Therapy Across Cultures. London: Sage. Laming WH. (2003) The Victoria Climbià © Report. London: Stationery Office. Accessed on January 10, 2008 at: www.victoria-climbie-inquiry.org.uk/finreport/finreport.htm. Malin, N. (2000) Professional Boundaries and the Workplace. London: Routledge. Melzak, S. (1992) Secrecy, Privacy, Survival, Repressive Regimes, and Growing Up. London: Anna Freud Centre. Miller, G. (1973) Communication, Language and Meaning: Psychological Perspectives. New York: Basic Books. Morrison, T. (2007) Emotional Intelligence, Emotion and Social Work: Context, Characteristics, Complications and Contributions. British Journal of Social Work, Vol. 37 (2), 245-263. Papadopoulos, R. K. (ed.) (2002) Therapeutic Care for Refugees. No Place like Home, London: Karnac. Richman, N. (1998b) Looking Before and After: Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the West. In: P.J. Bracken C. Petty (Eds.) Rethinking the Trauma of War. London: Save the Children. Schà ¶n, D. (1987) Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Schà ¶n, D. (1983) The Reflective Practitioner. New York: Basic Books. Thompson, N. (2003) Communication and Language. Hampshire: Palgrave. United Nations (2007), Report No. A/52/273. Report of the United High Commission for Refugees, Questions Relating to Refugees, Returnees and Displaced Persons and Humanitarian Questions: Assistance to Unaccompanied Refugee Minors. Accessed at: http://www.un.org/documents/ga/docs/52/plenary/a52-273.htm. Wilhelmy, R., Bull, R. (1999). Drawing to Remember: The Use of Visual Aids to Interview Child Witnesses. Practitioners’ Child Law Bulletin, 12, 66-69. Wilson C and Powell M (2001) A Guide to Interviewing Children. London: Routledge. Young, J. (1999) The Exclusive Society. London: Sage.

Moving To America Essays -- Personal Narrative Essays

I walked around unsteadily all day like a lost baby, far away from its pack. Surrounded by unfamiliar territory and uncomfortable weather, I tried to search for any signs of similarities with my previous country. I roamed around from place to place and moved along with the day, wanting to just get away and go back home. This was my first day in the United States of America. A few months before all of this I was pleased with my calm life in a local city of Taiwan. I settled there at the age of two with my family, and things were going well so far. Because I lived there for ten years, the longest time that I ever spent living in one place, I had made really good friends and was not looking forward to any significant changes although my mom had told me a long time ago, we might move to USA to settle with our uncle and grandma. My mom also told me that the other reason we move is for a better education and life there but I was not listening at that time. I thought she was just joking around because my brother and I have always expected to have a vacation to other countries. By the time I finished my first year of middle school I knew that this was nearly impossible. My family was already packing up, cleaning out the house, and reserving four airplane tickets to USA. The day that I discovered my parents' future plans was one that seemed like a normal day for a twelve-year old. I got up, had my breakfast, and then proceeded to hang around with my friends. Later on that day I went out to play basketball at the school along with my older brother. After we went home, my mom was making dinner and talking to our uncle. After my mom finished the call, she tried to casually approach me and then said in Taiwanese, ?Judy, we are moving i... ... and I started to realize some of the good effects that moving has had. I now understand that this experience has changed me in positive ways as well. Soon I would have friends in different places in the world that I can visit. I would have many places where I could go and feel like home. Most importantly, I would learn that one can adapt to every town and its people and that friends can be made everywhere. Every place has its conveniences and its problems. Every town has its generous and heartless citizens. I live now more secure and bold, like a lion with increased mass and knowledge, not with one, but many packs. I can roam territory that is unfamiliar without feeling lost and alone. Instead, I search for the best way to take advantage of my position in a foreign territory. I can visit recognizable lands and feel at home. This is my, not so new, way of life.

Advancement of Civic Engagement by Community Foundations in Low Income

The role of civic engagement in neighborhood revitalization, particularly in low income African American communities, has gained increased awareness and in recent years. Community, nonprofit, and government leaders now view civic engagement as a critical component of effective solutions as they seek to address crime, unemployment, low graduation rates and numerous other neighborhood challenges. Several successful initiatives have come to fruition and provide strong evidence of the benefits that increased civic engagement provides. Experts commonly define civic engagement as individual and group actions that collectively address general issues of concern that are public in nature. Civic engagement takes many forms such volunteerism, community organizing, and involvement in public policy and political issues. Individuals and community residents can express civic engagement through a variety of activities including participating in neighborhood associations, communicating with elected officials, and volunteering for local nonprofits. Golod (2008) analyzed the Southside Family Charter School located in Minneapolis, MN which serves as a prime example of early civic engagement. Students enrolled in the school reside in a low income community that is close to 50% African American. To improve civic engagement of students and parents, school administrators have developed lesson plans with a focus on civil rights. As a result, the community is preparing a new generation of residents focused on improving their community who follow in the footsteps of parents serving in volunteer capacities and as strong neighborhood activists. The McCormick Foundation recently demonstrated a commitment to civic engagement here in Chicago by ... ...are: Pushing the boundaries of civic engagement for african american youth. Liberal Education, 97(2), 34-39. Golod, F. (2008). Civil rights and social justice: A path to engagement and transformation. Horace, 24(3), 6. Grillo, M.,C., Teixeira, M. A., & Wilson, D. C. (2010). Residential satisfaction and civic engagement: Understanding the causes of community participation. Social Indicators Research, 97(3), 451-466. Kimball, K., & Kopell, M. (2011). Letting GO. Stanford Innovation Review, 9(2), 37- 41. Maton, K. I. (2008). Empowering community settings: Agents of individual development, community betterment, and positive social change. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41(1-2), 4-21. Tester, G., Ruel, E., Anderson, A., Reitzes, D. C., & Oakley, D. (2011). Sense of place among atlanta public housing residents. Journal of Urban Health, 88(3), 436-53.

Smoking: One Light Can Be One Less Breathe Essay -- Social Issues, Add

Smoking: One Light Can Be One Less Breathe As a group of young girls were swinging swiftly on the swings in the park, they no longer smelled the fresh air, but the smell of cigarette smoke. When they looked up they realized a young man had walked by with a cigarette in hand. He was walking down the sidewalk puffing away on his cigarette, paying no attention to the young girls playing on the playground. Little does he know, by making the choice to smoke a cigarette, he is significantly harming himself and all the people around him who have chosen not to take part in smoking. He does not know and understand the effects smoking can have on a person’s body. There are multiple health risks he takes by simply choosing to light and smoke a cigarette. When he realizes the problems cigarettes can cause, he will want to quit and find different ways to help him. Obviously, there are endless amounts of different solutions to the habit of smoking. As soon as this man realizes what he is doing to himself, those little girls, and everyone else surrounding him, he will certainly want to get help. As the National Cancer Institute notes, â€Å"Secondhand smoke causes disease and premature death in nonsmoking adults and children† (2). This is a piece of information he would learn at a support group meeting, which is one way to quit. Another way he can get rid of the habit is to use nicotine replacement therapy, which would be a nicotine patch and gum. There are also behavioral and motivational therapies a person has as an option to take into consideration. On the other hand, there is also hypnosis someone can perform to help get rid of the habit. As proved, there are numerous ways to quit. On the contrary, with quitting this addictive habit, people ... ...otine patch and gum. Some smokers do not think these work well so they may want to try the other methods previously mentioned, such as, hypnosis or motivational and behavioral therapies. But there is no doubt about it that quitting is the best possible solution for smoking. There are great health risks smokers are taking when lighting that one cigarette. However, they can take actions to stop that. It is just a matter of wanting to make yourself healthy again. Smokers also need to think of the others around them. The National Cancer Institute claims, â€Å"Secondhand smoke causes disease and premature death in nonsmoking adults and children† (2). Smoking can cause death to others around the person smoking. They do not have a choice to be around smoke sometimes. Because they do not have an option, smokers need to make their choice to quit smoking before killing someone.

English Proverb Example

English proverbs 1. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. † Strong people don't give up when they come across challenges. They just work harder. 2. â€Å"No man is an island. † You can't live completely independently. Everyone needs help from other people. 3. â€Å"Fortune favors the bold. † People who bravely go after what they want are more successful than people who try to live safely. 4. â€Å"People who live in glass houses should not throw stones. † Don't criticize other people if you're not perfect yourself. 5. â€Å"Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. †This seems pretty clear 6. â€Å"Better late than never. † This one's clear, too. 7. â€Å"There's no place like home. † Your own home is the most comfortable place to be. 8. â€Å"Discretion is the greater part of valor. † Sometimes it's important to know when to give up and run away, instead of always acting brave and maybe getting hurt. 9. â€Å"The early bird catches the worm. † You should wake up and start work early if you want to succeed. 10. â€Å"Never look a gift horse in the mouth. † If someone offers you a gift, don't question it. 11. â€Å"You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. When you try to do something great, you'll probably make a few people annoyed or angry. Don't worry about those people; just focus on the good results. 12. â€Å"God helps those who help themselves. † Don't just wait for good things to happen to you. Work hard to achieve your goals. 13. â€Å"One man's trash is another man's treasure. † Different people have different ideas about what's valuable. 14. â€Å"There's no time like the present. † If you need to do something, don't wait until later. Do it now. 15. â€Å"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.Different people have different ideas about what's beautiful. 16. â€Å"Necessity is the mother of invention. † When you're really in need, you think of creative solutions to your problems. 17. â€Å"A penny saved is a penny earned. † Save your money. 18. â€Å"Familiarity breeds contempt. † When you're around someone for too long, you get tired of them and annoyed by them. 19. â€Å"You can't judge a book by its cover. † Things sometimes look different than they really are. A restaurant that looks old and small might have amazing food, for example. 20. â€Å"Good things come to those who wait. † Be patient.

Bahamian environment Essay

Question brooding and irresponsible disposal of drool by mans is destroying our Bahamian purlieu. In order to define the littering we must offset define the word litter. bevy refers to unalike waste products such(prenominal) as containers, papers, and wrappers that ache been disposed onto streets, yards and remote areas. This means littering is the contaminant of our environment by different litter waste. Littering not only destroys our elegant Bahamian environment that it also affects wildlife, human wellness and the economy. Littering and irresponsible disposal of slobber in our environment is a precise important issue, which many raft overlook. Although people know littering is an illegal act, many compensate to carelessly scatter their trash round nonetheless. Litter cr erasees toxins and pollutants that are harmful to our environment. When Bahamians hold in applesauce bottles and cigarettes in bushes and along the roads the sun reflects off of them, resulting in a fire igniting.The smoke from the fire result presently fill the air, slow polluting and destroying the atmosphere. Litter is harmful to wildlife also. They may ingest the fictile and paper then suffer from sobering illness. Small animals crawl into bottles and jars looking for provender and may go away stuck and slowly lust to d occupyh. Littering not only affects land creatures but marine life as well. umteen marine animals confuse waxy bags, balloons, annoy packets, basisdy wrappers and rubber with prey and eat them. Plastic bags and balloons floating in the water look like jellyfish. Turtles often eat them and choke or starve to end because they have so much plastic in their stomachs. In addition, illegally dumped items containing dubious waste can harm the environment and have a potentially cast out impact on human health.Food, packaging, and early(a) materials unexpended to rot provide a fertile breeding ground in which bacteria thrives, resulting in a he alth hazard for those that come into contact with it. Litter can also create refuge problems, with items such as broken glass bottles and metal cans having the potential to cause blot to anyone that steps or falls on it. In the Bahamas, mainly in Freeport we live on many bush fires. When pollutants are left in the air we as manhood inhale them, this contaminated are travels to our lungs which slowly kills them. Furthermore, littering can widely affect the economy. collectable to animals consuming litter and dumping they preferably or later die.Because these animals are last they go forth very shortly become extinct. With no marine life and wildlife, the Bahamas will lose it main attraction which is its beautiful coral reefs and sea creatures. With no tourists access to see these attractions, the economy of the Bahamas will soon fall dramatically all from littering and pollution. Littering is an super important issue in Bahamian society that should not be overlooked. It can affect the Bahamas in ways such as environmental, economic, health and wildlife. Our beautiful soil is filled with many undiscovered wonders let us not kill them by failing to do such a small action. Throw garbage in the trash and not the sea make unnecessary litter in your hand and not on the land. So remember nutrition the Bahamas clean, green and pristine.