Last week on the CBC Radio Ontario Morning Show there was a woman who was telling her story of survival at the Aboriginal Residential Schools. These schools were government run and the aboriginal children were sent there to educate them in English, Christianity and mainstream customs. Every aboriginal child was forced to go to such a boarding school because attendance was mandatory. These children were taken from their families and stripped away of their aboriginal heritage. They were even punished when they spoke their native language to their siblings. Many aboriginal children were sexually abused, beaten and some even killed. 

This aboriginal woman who was doing the interview on the CBC radio managed to come home to her community. But she did not fit in anymore. It was time for her to go to a normal High School and she did not want to go. She was broken and scared. She decided to go to school with her younger siblings. She went to their class and got a book and started reading to the class. She managed to spend the rest of the day there and then the principle came and spoke to her. The girl asked if she could come back the next day, that she needed to because going to school was mandatory. The principle understood her fear and allowed her. To this day there is a school picture of her in a grade one class.

I found this interview to be so touching. I wish that I could find it in the podcast, but I looked and could not find it on the CBC website. What really struck me is how much impact the principle had on this girl. The principle of the elementary school listened and was able to connect with this child. The principle understood that there was a lot of hurt and pain that needed to be healed.

So what is the lesson that I took out of this story… I want to be able to connect with my own children in this way. No matter how much they hurt, I want them to be able to come to me for help. As a mother, I need to love, connect, understand and acknowledge their feelings. When children are are heard a lot of their frustrations go away. When we connect with our kids it is easier to stear them in the right direction.

I would love to hear stories of how you are connecting with your children and the impact it is having on your relationship.

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