When I was 24, I worked for a few months as the director of after school programs at the YMCA in Burlington in the summer while doing a few other things. It was for kids aged eight to ten and lasted for a few hours in the afternoon three times a week. I liked the change of pace and I would work out after.
There were three to four programs running simultaneously. In one of the programs, there was a kid Eugene who looked a lot like Dennis the Menace. He even pushed his unruly straight blond hair out of his freckled face in the same way. :) One of the teachers pointed him out to me and told me she was having a hard time getting him to do group activities and that he was slow, very quiet and never said a word.
When I came into the classroom that day, a couple of kids who I had met previously ran over to me and soon were jumping on me, showing me what they had drawn (they just had an art class) and asking me to tell them a story, while simultaneously trying to climb into my lap. As you can tell, I am not the best at disciplining kids. Ha! I love them though!
We were having a "show and tell" the next day where kids could bring in their pets. A lot of the kids excitedly started telling me about their pets that they were bringing in. They then continued to badger me to tell them a story so I did.
Curious, Eugene wandered over slowly, inching his way over. Midway through my story, I discovered him leaning in on my left, elbows on the table next to me, his gaze fixed firmly on me, eyes unflinching, completely absorbed in the story. As I finished up, I noticed the kids were a bit rude to him. He came over and stood by me patiently without saying a word.
I said, "Eugene?"
He nodded and smiled in a shy, happy way.
"Well Eugene, what do you like to do?"
He stared at me for a minute and just as I was about to say something else, he said quickly, "I like to play with my snake."
"Your snake?" I asked, surprised.
"Yes, and my tarantula," he continued, "And my python. I have quite a few snakes."
By this time the table where I was sitting was surrounded by all the kids in the class who stared at Eugene. He blushed with all the attention. I nodded and he continued on, "Yeah my dad helped me get 'em. I like 'em. I've even been trained how to handle them."
"What?" "Who?" "Really?" The kids were shouting and standing round Eugene in shock and a little admiration. He'd gotten everyone riled up.
Eugene tugged on my blouse. "Can I bring 'em?" I looked over at the two teachers who both had raised eyebrows. One of them smiled at me.
"I think you can bring in a pet as long as you have got an adult present - like your dad or mom," I said. I looked over at the teachers and they nodded in agreement.
"Okay," Eugene said solemnly. He stood next to me and when I got up from the table, he looked at me very hopefully. Then he proceeded to follow me around the room and into the next room.
When the session ended for the day, all the kids got picked up by their parents but I noticed Eugene was still waiting. He saw me look at him and ran over to me and grabbed my left hand. He said, "Jan, I'm..."
"Yes, Eugene?"
"I'm only 6."
I was surprised to hear it as the program was for 8 to 10-year-olds. One of the teachers quickly came over to me and whispered in my right ear, "He's not supposed to be here." I was not sure what to say.
Eugene waited and looked at me again hopefully.
I smiled and said, "Well, that's even then more amazing that you can do all the things you do. And you've got all these amazing animals."
His face lit up. "Yeah!" He nodded several times fast.
His mother arrived just then. She looked very tired. One of the teachers right away told her that she needed to be more prompt and she wearily agreed. She came over to me when she saw Eugene talking to me and said, "That's the most I have ever seen him talk!"
Then she confided in me that she could not find a place that would take him and had put his age down as eight in the records. She looked at me with a guilty expression and said, "You do understand, don't you?"
I didn't say anything. Eugene put on his jacket and came over to me and asked me, "Will you do it?" pointing at the buttons. I nodded and helped. I smiled at Eugene and his mom as they left.
The next day the kids had their "show and tell" event. There were dogs, cats, bunnies and hamsters galore. Then there was Eugene with three cages! One housed his pet tarantula. Another contained an iridescent green snake. The third held a small, long bright orange snake. His dad was there beside him. I could see where he got the habit of shaking his head of hair. :)
When Eugene saw me, he ran over and said, "Jan, do you want to hold my snake?" I did not want to hurt his feelings, but I was afraid of snakes. The thought of holding one made my stomach a little queasy.
"Um Eugene, I'm kinda afraid of snakes."
He looked at me very calmly and said, "It's okay." Then he waited for a minute. "I can show you how."
Maybe it was the tone of his voice or maybe I just wanted to overcome my fear, but I agreed and then he took out the orange snake and showed me how to hold it. I was amazed at how calm he was and how good he was with the snake. The orange color of the snake's skin was brighter in some areas and slightly iridescent. The snake slithered in his arms and Eugene moved his arms adroitly. He was completely at ease and smiled at me. For the first time, I looked at snakes differently. It seemed like any other animal to me, with its own vulnerability and maybe even, a desire to be loved and held. I was mesmerized by its slow movements. It was a beautiful creature.
Eugene put the snake in my hands and helped me adjust to holding it. He was gentle and confident at the same time - a fantastic maturity and awareness. All the kids had gathered round again. His dad was nearby and kept an eye on all the pets. Many parents watched in amazement.
I've never been frightened of snakes since little Eugene taught me how to see them differently. As for Eugene, after that event, all the kids were so impressed with him that they fought over who could have Eugene in their little groups for activities.