Insights

From the start, my hope for the workshops was that participants would leave with more strategies for tutoring. During the workshop in Edmonton, I also recognized a need to encourage hope and selfcare. Facilitating the two workshops also helped me understand how my experiences of violence are with me in the workshop whether I speak directly about them or not. This led me to wonder, more, about what it is like for others who have experienced violence to attend the workshop.

Hope

The introductory free-writing activity prompted much discussion in Edmonton. As some people started talking I thought "Oh, No! They know way more about this than I do. What am I doing here!" As the workshop continued, I realized they needed strategies of hope and encouragement.

The overhead If you suspect a child is... prompted discussion around the lack of shelters for people, lack of funds; lack of response from RCMP; too many people in an area with problems to solve; more violence occurring when people make the effort to leave; and cultures that shun a woman for leaving her husband, leaving her even more alone. There seemed to be a sense of hopelessness.

I tried to find a positive for every negative, putting much emphasis on believing in students and their capabilities. Participants also responded with stories and strategies. One participant told of a lady who came to his program slouched over with her hair in her eyes. Nothing seemed to bring her out of herself until he brought in a keyboard, which she knew how to play. The other students complimented her and gave her honest praise for what she was good at. Gradually the hair lifted and she had a face and a positive presence in the program.

I encouraged participants to find one person to support them and to remember that people who are experiencing violence can feel that all odds are against them. We can encourage and praise people for even one small step taken when the odds seem so great. Many participants felt they were not making a difference in solving problems, and we talked about how encouragement, praise, and support may not be heeded at the time, but is remembered even years later.