Amazing Stories

I have mentioned before that metaphors work very well when working with kids. Recently I have done some research that suggest that narrative therapy is effective with youngsters too. It can be done in various manner, telling a story and reflecting on it or composing a story together, usually one which involves initial struggles and then mastering the strength to overcome them. After all, ain't all the religious teachings enriched with parables and stories? In fact there is this person called Kwame Scruggs who employs mythological stories and drumming as a means of healing psychological wounds whilst working with adolescent youths and male high school "drop-outs" in Ohio.

Borrowing a story of his entitled "Half-Boy", I shared it with two of my students. The story is about a boy who was born with half a body, ie. only the right side was visible whilst the left side was invisible and extremely weak. Of course the boy was ostracizsed and eventually,after a lot of pain, decided to leave the village. He then met another half-boy who had the same affliction except that he was only visible on the left side. Instead of becoming great friends, the 2 half boys had a great fight and went through a lot of struggles till they rolled into the river. When they emerged they became a complete wholesome boy. This is I think a great story to talk about with teenagers concerning feelings of incompleteness, things lacking in one's life, the internal conflicts one endures and the struggles to be more complete.

However with younger kids (ten and eleven) they may not necessarily see the analogy straight away. So I educate them first about the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of our lives that help make us feel more complete and whole. Explaining the spiritual aspect can be quite challenging as I suggest that it is not only about attending religious classes or going to church/temple but can also refer to activities like being with nature, connecting to the soul through art, music and journaling and having quiet moments. I then get them to think about it for further discussion at the next session.

I didnt think it will leave much of an impression on them and thought them a bit too young to understand. However I was rather surprised at the subsequent session when they seem to be aware of their needs. The ten year old boy declared " I lack this " pointing to the spiritual quarter ( I have drawn a figure with 4 parts on the board). Now this is a boy who is in the best class, represents school in scrabbles, is never satisfied with his performance and is arrogant and always trying to prove himself. The eleven year old boy's remarks that he needs help in both the emotional and spiritual aspects was less of a surprise to me. He is older and has been presented for counselling arising from frequent complaints about being stressful.

The fact that they remember the story well already proves that stories do leave an impression. They may not relate to the story immediately but may one day recall and draw some lessons from it. I was also rather surprised to learn of a true incident whereby a boy in the States plucked up enough courage to save a relative from the fast flowing waters during a flood. He was asked later where he pulled his energy from. He said the story about a little engine that pulled a broken down train across the mountain had suddenly surfaced in his mind and gave him the strength. The train in the story was carrying christmas toys for the children living on the other side of the mountain. As it went, the little engine had kept bravely puffing faster and faster, "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can." These words had resonated in his mind.

I had actually read this book before at one of my story telling sessions at the library. The book is entitled "The Engine that Could". Hmm... I wonder whether Obama read it when he was young and changed it to "Yes, We Can".