Healing Hearts

Children of Seperation and Divorce Center, Inc. / Columbia: 410-740-9553

   Special Summer Issue!
 

School’s Out! What are you going to do this summer? Camp? Work? Play? Swim?

For some kids, the summer can mean spending a lot of time away from their school friends, especially if they live in a different neighborhood. Get some tips from kids on how to stay active, healthy and make friends on page one and two.

We put the word out for some poems, pictures and art work in   

our last issue and wow did we get a response! Check out the poems and stories in our Creative Expressions section on page 3.

Don’t forget to read our “Most Frequently Asked Questions” section on page 2. Once again, we welcome your input.

We wish you a happy, safe, and wonderful summer!

   Summer Survial Guide
 

Often, when kids share their time between two homes, one of the homes is in the same neighborhood as school and the other is not. It can be hard for kids if they feel happy and well liked in one place and isolated in the other. Seth, from Laurel, MD, shares his time between Gaithersburg and Laurel. He says, “I have a lot of friends in Laurel. I am always outside and I get to see my cousins often, too. When I am at my mom’s house in Gaithersburg, I spend a lot more time inside watching TV. I have seen kids my age around, but I don’t know them.”

Since so many of our peer counselors have experienced the same thing, we asked them to compile a list of helpful hints.

1. If you are in elementary school, start a game outside and invite other kids to play.

2. If you are in middle or high school, look in to the cost of joining a pool or gym. If you are unable to afford the monthly dues, you may be able to volunteer or get a job at one.

3. For any age, go to the library. It’s a great place to be on a rainy day. While you’re there, pick up “Kid Street”, a newspaper filled with free or minimal cost summer events for kids of any age.

Continued on page 2

Healing Hearts/ Volume 1, Issue 2 / Page 2 of 3

“Put a smile on your face” Brittany, age 11
Wilde Lake Middle School, Columbia, MD.

Summer Survival Guide, Continued from page 1

4. For any age, spend time with your brother or sister. Your new “friend” could be right in front of you!

5. Don’t forget to have a friend; you need to be a friend. Smile, be kind, and try to never talk about people behind their backs. Be fair, and generous with your time and friendship.

6. Let your parents know what is going on for you. If you are feeling lonely or left out in your neighborhood, they might be able to help you out.

 Most of all, you should take good care of yourself. Keep busy. Try to eat healthy foods and get lots of rest and exercise. When you’re feeling happy and healthy, you have a natural confidence about you. So, take good care of yourself and try giving new friends a chance. Before you know it, you will feel at home in both places!

Why?

My Parents never really fought a lot and I thought that we were a great family. I don’t understand why they separated, and I want them to get back together more than anything. Why would they split up if they didn’t look unhappy?

-A.W., Columbia, MD

Dear A.W.,
One of the toughest things for kids whose parents decide to separate is when they didn’t see it coming.

aparents about your worries, wonders, and feelings. They will probably feel better too, if they are able to talk with you and help you. Also, there are so many kids who feel the same way. Don’t forget that this is the list of most frequently asked questions! We know that this is really hard for you and your family and it seems very unfair. Keep reading this newseltter, ask your guidance counselor or teacher about joining a group at school for kids who have been through a divorce, and most of all, keep talking to your parents!

A Wond’rin’ Why

She sits there, a wond’rin’ why,
Asking herself if anything they told her has ever been true.
She wonders if everything said was a lie,
Her thoughts drip silently, like drops of dew.
They now sit still on the lush, grassy plains of her mind.
She thinks, maybe I should leave these strange thoughts behind,
Yet she still sits a wond’rin’ why.

When the sky is kissed and begins to cry,
She still sits a wond’rin’ why.
When its sun becomes its sparkling eye.
She still sits a wond’rin’ why.
When its clouds become a befuddled mind,
She still sits a wond’rin’ why.
When the jewels of the silver light illuminate the eternally dark sky,
She still sits a wond’rin’ why.

And then she notices that all is not her fault,
And that others are standing there.
Others who deal with all sorts of tumult,
Others who truly care.

So she pushes away her nightmare of broad daylight,
She stands atop of it and makes herself fight.
She knows that she has the strength, the confidence, the hope, the might,
To do what she knows is truly right.
She is now the sunset, with a prism of colorful light,
Her colors blend and she knows she is all right.
She will live without all her nightmares of day and night.
She did survive…
But she still sits a wond’rin’ why…

Alexandra, Grade six
Wilde Lake Middle School

Upcoming Events for Kids and Families
• Peer Counselor celebration on July 17, 2001 from 4:00 – 7:00**
•  Kidshare, August, 2001**
** Call the center for more information

Sometimes, in situations where there were really bad fights, the separation may even be a relief. Even though your parents may have been quietly unhappy with each other for years, this comes as a complete shock for you. This is understandable. It is also understandable to want your family all back under one roof. Our advice is to talk with your

“Pink Flower” Laura, Grade 6, Wilde Lake Middle School, Columbia, MD

June 2001

To contribute your thoughts, ideas, artwork, articles, and poetry, email or write to Carolyn at COSD.