I haven't actually blogged in a coons age.
I have several blogs so I suppose I should explain how long a coons age is.
December 16, 2012 for my first blog DWNTWN's Soul Searching, over 18 months.
January 17, 2013 for Steppin' Out with DWNTWN just under 18 months.
My last blog is generally just a quick pict and doesn't involve much writing so I don't count that. But I am proud of the fact that I am nearing the 3 year mark for posting a picture a day.
There are a few topics that have been tumbling around in my head for weeks, maybe months, now and I know these thoughts are calling me to get back to writing in one form or another. Maybe my blog, or maybe my next book. I'm not exactly sure.
But regardless of where this is going, I have to make time for writing.
It feeds my soul.
So much has changed in the past year and a half that I don't know where to begin.
Do I go back and try to remember everything that has happened, or do I just begin where I am today?
I think beginning where I am today makes more sense, and besides... its easier.
I truly enjoy my job. I don't say that because this is a first for me. I have been blessed with working for and with some wonderful people in some awesome ministry position. In looking back over my adult life it appears that every position I have had has been to prepare me for my current job. I am a Case Manager for an emergency homeless shelter for families.
When I first applied for the position I was fairly certain I knew what the job would entail and that I was very well suited for the job, but the title itself, Case Manager, sounds like all I do is shuffle and manage case files. While there is a fair amount of paperwork, what I do is so much more than manage cases.
I googled the definition of Case Manager and found this on the Commission for Case Manager Certification web page:
Lets take today for instance. I began my day with a text from my director to call him regarding an issue with one of our guests. (We refer to our families as guests because that is how we try to treat them, with hospitality, care, and attention.) Not all of our guests come to us expressing the gratitude and appreciation. They often arrive at our door doing their best to deal with an excess amount of trauma. The kind of trauma that anyone reading this blog has probably never experienced. Aside from being homeless, living in their car, or a tent alongside the river, they often have not had access to the basic needs; food, shelter, safe place to sleep, and hygiene.
As you can imagine our guests often lack the ability to respond to further trauma in an appropriate manner. Such was the case today when a guest got into an argument with our transportation driver. It should have been a simple disagreement. But it wasn't simple for someone who is hanging on by a thread. My morning began with mediating conflict.
I could give you a laundry list of tasks I completed that filled my day, but the things I crossed off my to-do list aren't the most important aspects of my job, nor is crossing off my list what I love about my job.
What I loved today was giving a young girl of 9 a quick trim of her hair so she can feel pretty about herself.
And I loved taking time to chat with a 4 year old as she drew a picture for me.
I laughed at corny jokes and puns delivered by my director, and I enjoyed the conversation with a dad who is scrambling to pick up any odd jobs he can find to try and support his family. I am proud of the work I did on a resume with a gentleman of 59 who has been a truck mechanic all of his life and now struggles to find work in a younger market. He has never been homeless before and is truly struggling with his self worth and his ability to put his feelings into words.
Those are things that don't get defined in a google search for Case Manager.
But those are just a few of the things that made today great. And tomorrow I know will be the same, and different. I am well suited for my job, and I am so blessed it found me!
Perhaps I will blog again soon and tell the story of how being a Case Manager at Salem Interfaith Hospitality Network found me.
Click Here to see where I work.
I have several blogs so I suppose I should explain how long a coons age is.
December 16, 2012 for my first blog DWNTWN's Soul Searching, over 18 months.
January 17, 2013 for Steppin' Out with DWNTWN just under 18 months.
My last blog is generally just a quick pict and doesn't involve much writing so I don't count that. But I am proud of the fact that I am nearing the 3 year mark for posting a picture a day.
There are a few topics that have been tumbling around in my head for weeks, maybe months, now and I know these thoughts are calling me to get back to writing in one form or another. Maybe my blog, or maybe my next book. I'm not exactly sure.
But regardless of where this is going, I have to make time for writing.
It feeds my soul.
So much has changed in the past year and a half that I don't know where to begin.
Do I go back and try to remember everything that has happened, or do I just begin where I am today?
I think beginning where I am today makes more sense, and besides... its easier.
I truly enjoy my job. I don't say that because this is a first for me. I have been blessed with working for and with some wonderful people in some awesome ministry position. In looking back over my adult life it appears that every position I have had has been to prepare me for my current job. I am a Case Manager for an emergency homeless shelter for families.
When I first applied for the position I was fairly certain I knew what the job would entail and that I was very well suited for the job, but the title itself, Case Manager, sounds like all I do is shuffle and manage case files. While there is a fair amount of paperwork, what I do is so much more than manage cases.
I googled the definition of Case Manager and found this on the Commission for Case Manager Certification web page:
Definition of Case Management
Case management is a collaborative process that assesses, plans, implements, coordinates, monitors, and evaluates the options and services required to meet the client's health and human service needs. It is characterized by advocacy, communication, and resource management and promotes quality and cost-effective interventions and outcomes.
Being a Case Manager for an emergency homeless shelter for families encompasses so much more than any definition one can google, no matter how professional the website.Lets take today for instance. I began my day with a text from my director to call him regarding an issue with one of our guests. (We refer to our families as guests because that is how we try to treat them, with hospitality, care, and attention.) Not all of our guests come to us expressing the gratitude and appreciation. They often arrive at our door doing their best to deal with an excess amount of trauma. The kind of trauma that anyone reading this blog has probably never experienced. Aside from being homeless, living in their car, or a tent alongside the river, they often have not had access to the basic needs; food, shelter, safe place to sleep, and hygiene.
As you can imagine our guests often lack the ability to respond to further trauma in an appropriate manner. Such was the case today when a guest got into an argument with our transportation driver. It should have been a simple disagreement. But it wasn't simple for someone who is hanging on by a thread. My morning began with mediating conflict.
I could give you a laundry list of tasks I completed that filled my day, but the things I crossed off my to-do list aren't the most important aspects of my job, nor is crossing off my list what I love about my job.
What I loved today was giving a young girl of 9 a quick trim of her hair so she can feel pretty about herself.
I laughed at corny jokes and puns delivered by my director, and I enjoyed the conversation with a dad who is scrambling to pick up any odd jobs he can find to try and support his family. I am proud of the work I did on a resume with a gentleman of 59 who has been a truck mechanic all of his life and now struggles to find work in a younger market. He has never been homeless before and is truly struggling with his self worth and his ability to put his feelings into words.
Those are things that don't get defined in a google search for Case Manager.
But those are just a few of the things that made today great. And tomorrow I know will be the same, and different. I am well suited for my job, and I am so blessed it found me!
Click Here to see where I work.
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