Struggling to Understand in Life

We received a call from a parent this morning about one of our new students. Her oldest son, who is in one of my classes, attempted to kill himself last night. It just blows me away. He had a rough start to his day. (He signed his graded papers and was caught. He didn’t even do a good job of it.) He came to my room and was still angry and pouting. I pulled him aside and talked him about making the rest of his day better. That he couldn’t change what happened, but he could make the rest better. He teared up and I told him that if he cried, he would make me cry, too, so he couldn’t. That made him laugh and he hugged me. He seemed to cheer up and do better. He worked hard in my class, did well with his group, and smiled most of the time. I’m struggling with my new coworkers, too. I know they’re used to older kids, and they haven’t known these very long, but they just don’t seem as emotionally vested in this as I am. I was crying and they were saying it was sad, but there was nothing that we do, sort of an “oh well” attitude. I just can’t separate myself that way. I know I should be able to, but it’s not in me.
The child is in treatment, now. I’m not sure how long he be hospitalized. It could be just a week for an evaluation, or if they think it’s more involved, he might be there longer. My heart is breaking for him.
edit:
I don’t mean to make it sound like my coworkers don’t care. They do. They just are both able to say, “Wow, that’s terrible.” and then move on with their day. It was a hectic day, we were trying to finish a 3 day lab, but every time I stopped for a minute, my mind went to this young man and my heart hurt for him. I’m an emotional person. I know that. I love my kids, and I want the best for them. This young man’s mom seemed to be a very good lady and loving mom. I hope that’s the case. He’s new to our school, so I’ve only met her once, at open house.

Last updated August 27, 2016