You Need a Team on Your Side
In order to continuously learn, you need help. We’ve got this “do-it-yourself,
I-don’t-need-anyone” idea in America, like it’s somehow cooler, tougher, smarter,
or better to do things on your own (and only for yourself).
But doing it all by yourself is not only unnecessary but impossible. You can’t do
it on your own. So how do you get the help you need?
Everyone needs someone they can confide in, someone they can talk to about
whatever mountains they happen to be facing at the time. “Someone you can
talk to” might mean a professional counselor, but not necessarily. It might be an
uncle, a grandparent, a teacher, a school counselor, or a coach.
When Giselle John found an adult to confide in, her life changed. She came to
the U.S. from Trinidad and Tobago at age 14 and had a rough time adjusting to
high school. She got into a fight with another girl just two weeks after she started
ninth grade, and soon lost all interest in her education.
I kept getting low grades because I was cutting and not doing the work.
Sometimes I would just go home and sleep, or I wouldn’t even go to school at
all. There was no one looking over me, so I did what I wanted. I failed almost
all my exams.
I didn’t live with my family because they were back in the West Indies. I lived
with my mom’s friend, and she was too busy with her own life to pay attention
to mine.
Then I found a babysitting job, which made things worse. I was always tired
and skipping school more often than before. I couldn’t give up the job. I needed
the money to take care of myself.
But when Giselle began the 10th grade, she met a teacher who would change
her life.
One day I was falling asleep in my English classroom. Just before the period
ended I woke up, only to see my teacher, Ms. Stanford, looking at me.
“What’s the matter with you?” she asked.
“Nothing,” I answered softly.
I wanted to tell her what was on my mind. I needed someone to listen to me
and I knew she would. I always noticed how the other kids related to her. She