The girl was at school yesterday, with some new clothes from the shelter. (Usually she wears the same clothes--perhaps not numerically the same, but same in appearance at least.) At the end of the day she came up to me and ask, "Mr. C--, do you know that I don't like with anybody? Not with my dad. Not with my mom. I live at the shelter now." She had been behaving 'normally'--lots of walking around and talking, not much work. But I was able to finally get her to settle down a little at the end of the day, as everyone else had free time and was playing with math manipulatives or the computer. She is quite smart, but doesn't focus on her work. And she may have problems with socializing with others; she tries really hard to make friends, but doesn't have many.

Anyway, I asked her, "Did they tell you if your mom was picking you up today?" I had talked with her case worker the day before. She shook her head. So I said, "Ok, maybe your mom will pick you up today." Turns out her mom was waiting outside, because I saw her from behind as she was waking away with her daughter. She is a bit older, as the case worker told me--some gray in her hair. The girl was asking her if something was wrong, but not in a complete sentence. I'm not sure what she said in Vietnamese, but she said, "Meh..." and was looking at her mother.

The secretary was surprised to see her mother turn up at school, since no one called the school to tell the school that the mother was getting custody back. Turns out there was also a lack of communication between the case worker and the one from the children's shelter who was driving the girl back and forth. The driver showed up at the end of the school day as well, and the he had to make a call to social services to see what was going on. It's no surprise that the regular teacher doesn't think that CPS is able to do much to help families in these situations.

But what can you do in a community that is too big for its own good, lacks solid communal bonds or a common culture?

As I was leaving M-rat called to me from a SUV in the bus circle, "Mr. C!" She said, "Look! I'm not wearing a uniform. I'm going to a party." I asked her, "Oh, where are you going?" And her friend responded, "Medical center." I asked where at the medical center, but they didn't clarify. I wished them a good time and as I was leaving M-rat said, "Bye Maestro C-nie!" She is a funny girl.