I’m an LST

LST = Life Skills Trainer.

Today, I was, in effect, a baby-sitter – not that I’m dealing with girls that young; both are nearly 18. What I should say is that I was "the adult" while the House Mother and Father were out this afternoon.

"My" girl lives in a "Respite House", having been moved 2 weeks ago from the Foster Home she was living in. No one told me exactly why she was moved; I gather that there were some conflicts, and/or, "the Plan" wasn’t being followed. I don’t have "a need to know", really, but I do have a "client" in the Respite House, where another young woman is living (in addition to the house daughter).

The House Mom had to go do something or other, and left me with the two girls from noon till 5. "My" girl is still in an air cast; her ankle is still sprained, and she wasn’t feeling well, she said, and I had to stay with both girls. We watched "Speed 2" and some programs on TV, and talked.

Things went pretty well until the last hour; the other girl got worked up into … not a "rage" but close enough and my girls were throwing TV and DVD remotes at each other and the one was swearing at the other. I did get them separated – one upstairs and the other downstairs, and since "my" girl seemed more level than the other girl, I left her downstairs and talked the other girl down from her anger, and she did, on her own, apologize, later.

I guess I could work on THAT; life is choices, and it doesn’t have to be the way it is.  You don’t have to choose to be angry, and you can, as i told "my" girl, let words be water off a duck’s back:  How you react is under your control.  And, if not, I might be able to teach them that. And, you can choose NOT to do things you’ll have to apologize for later.

I didn’t get upset or freak out – I stayed calm and with an easy voice talked them both down a bit, and I didn’t rough ’em up or anything – I’m not sure if I’m supposed to touch them at all, but I surely can’t let them hurt each other, can I.

By the time the House Mom got home, around 4:40, I had things pretty well quieted down and the girls calmer. An interesting "first day" of "real" work.

I’m supposed to go tomorrow and Thursday too, but tomorrow, another LST will be there and I can learn more of what is expected of me and how to better manage my charges.

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This job pays a dollar less than that Charter Bus job, and I don’t have to drive a bus or carry passengers, and I am pretty sure I like this job lots better.

Well, I’m not used to commuting, and the no-miles-an-hour traffic on the freeway home was… less than "fun", but I suppose I’ll get used to it, and, since the car has A/C, sitting in traffic wasn’t SO bad.  And, ha ha, it turns out that my car has a killer stereo in it, and that helps too. It took just under an hour to drive out there, but an hour and a half to get home, all of which time is "on the clock", so they tell me.

I can do this job, even if I don’t exactly "know" what is expected of me yet. For one thing, I’m pleasant and have "a nice voice" (a mask I wear as appropriate), and for another, well, I haven’t worked in a long time, and have found a place that fits me.

So, Onwards, onwards it is.

 

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