Search

In this portrait, Travis Wright documents young Goddess's capacity for strength in the face of trauma and neglect. Goddess, a sixteen-month-old child who has never laughed, is Wright's first client at his clinical internship during his graduate studies. Drawing on his work with Goddess, her mother, and her teachers, Wright explores the ways in which these many relationships help Goddess learn to laugh. Goddess's story provides a vivid depiction of the consequences of negative experiences in early childhood and the potential for programs to help children move beyond traumatic beginnings. The author describes how, through Goddess, he learns to see strength in behaviors he previously thought to be maladaptive. In reflecting on Goddess 's agency in her transformation as well as on his own, Wright beautifully documents one child 's journey from risk to resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this portrait, Travis Wright, writing as a psychology counselor in training, brings the reader into one morning's events in his clinical work with Jorge, a three-year-old boy whose family is experiencing difficult times. Throughout the morning at Jorge's day-care center; Wright encounters scenarios that force him to ask questions about child development, gender identity, masculinity, and family dynamics. Wright observes that boys are often thrust into a gendered world dictated by adult norms before they can make sense of their own life events and losses. The portrait is a poignant narrative of Jorge's experiences in and out of his day-care center; as well as a moving self-reflection on Wright's own gender identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]