I spent the first half of my day in the poorest part of Vancouver, and the second half in the wealthiest neighbourhood of Vancouver. I pass by such a wide range of neighbourhoods on the #4-Powell Bus from UBC to East Hastings and Main Street, from big mansions overlooking the water, to Vancouver’s central business district, into the poor and dirty neighbourhoods, it surprises me how much inequality there is. I keep thinking back to all those moments of shock and sadness when I spent the summer in rural Uganda, when I first grasped how great the global inequality gap really is. It depresses me: how many homeless people I see sleeping on the streets; how many people come up to me and ask me for money (no matter if it is for an addiction problem); how young some of those people are; how excitedly an elderly Chinese woman so often comes to chat with me in Mandarin, on Powell Street, because I look like I understand her language; how as soon as crosses the W/E boundary on Hastings Street, people from certain social classes get on/off; how obvious it all is.
In the morning I am placed as a Psychology student in one of the mental health housing units (St. James Victory House), and during my shift we take 8-10 residents on a roadtrip out to different parks in the Lower Mainland. This week we went to Deep Cove and Mount Seymour; last week we went to Barnet Marine Park down by SFU. I love spending time with the residents at the house, being part of their lives. I can’t say I do much for that practicum placement, since I really just sit there and play cards or go on scenic drives with the residents. Being there and engaging in conversations or simply observing the little community that is Victory House is already a whole lot of tiny nuances I don’t learn about in my psychology classes. Just having the same residents come up to me and ask me about my week, remember my name, tell me about their week, makes me feel appreciated and part of their little community—that is so important to me.
Towards the evening I take the bus back to my student’s house, by Shaunessy. I’ve always had a good number of students on my tutoring list, thanks to the government cutting back on the ESL programs, and also thanks to Asian parenting which encourage students to be enrolled in afterschool classes (every day). Their houses are always spacious, which makes me kind of envious. The students have their own workspace (office) which is not their bedroom; sometimes I wonder if they realize how blessed they are… I think I notice these things more so especially because I just finish my placement in the DTES.
My second student had a lot of things to talk about today, re: friendships and drama. I had a good chat with her about her feelings and possible ways to address her dilemmas. It feels good to be a mentor. Next Monday I’ll start teaching the Welcome to My Life program to 20 girls at Henderson Elementary School, which I’m sure will be as interesting as when I did it two years ago at Sexsmith Elementary School. I always think about when I was their age, not so long ago, how all those problems seemed so paramount. We all move past it, eventually, though I like the idea that I am considered a trusted adult for some girls now; it makes me feel wise and motherly.
People ask me why I fill up my schedule with so many commitments. I think it’s because I feel so fulfilled in my roles in these students’/clients’ lives. I learn just as much as I imagine I am teaching them… and that makes them important relationships for my own growth as a student.