attending workshops & conferences
so i was riding the local bus yesterday and it suddenly occurred to me that i was on an air-conditioned bus. although i see its usefulness for later on in the season, i felt the air conditioning was functioning contrary to its purpose of instilling comfortableness. it was in a way a disturbance for me to enjoy what is natural. just like today, the noisy air conditioning system made it hard for me to listen to the speakers and other participants at the workshop.
it was an all-day workshop on "nurturing queer youth: family therapy transformed". isn't family therapy and nurturing queer youths a contradiction in terms? that was one of the introductory jokes by rebecca harvey. i appreciated their personal sharing when rebecca talked about her present day challenges working at a catholic university, and linda stone fish's perspective in mothering her children.
i picked up a few captivating ideas that i'm still trying to think through, including seeing queerness as a gift, encouraging difficult dialogues, continuum of gender and evolving sexuality. how does one create a refuge for queer youth? what are the parents' & therapists' roles in witnessing and encouraging transformation? how do i BE a presence for others (instead of focusing on doing?!)??
personally, i find it quite fascinating that this field is always changing, so much so that there's this sense of it being "too new to know". take a look at this quote:
so it seems that this is a "conference month" for me. next weekend i'll be in toronto attending a nouwen conference and the week after there's a conference on social work & spirituality in town that i'm hoping to catch as well. stay tuned! :D
it was an all-day workshop on "nurturing queer youth: family therapy transformed". isn't family therapy and nurturing queer youths a contradiction in terms? that was one of the introductory jokes by rebecca harvey. i appreciated their personal sharing when rebecca talked about her present day challenges working at a catholic university, and linda stone fish's perspective in mothering her children.i picked up a few captivating ideas that i'm still trying to think through, including seeing queerness as a gift, encouraging difficult dialogues, continuum of gender and evolving sexuality. how does one create a refuge for queer youth? what are the parents' & therapists' roles in witnessing and encouraging transformation? how do i BE a presence for others (instead of focusing on doing?!)??
personally, i find it quite fascinating that this field is always changing, so much so that there's this sense of it being "too new to know". take a look at this quote:
"These new teens know they're not straight, and they don't want to be. Most are okay with it. Some are thrilled with their sexuality, but don't see why they must therefore label themselves as gay. Yes, they are sexually attracted to other girls or other boys, perhaps ever so slightly. Maybe their feelings are romantic but not sexual--or sexual but not romantic. That's not bad. It's natural. It gives them an edge, a certain mystery. It sets them off from their peers--and from us adults" (Savin-Williams, 2005).
so it seems that this is a "conference month" for me. next weekend i'll be in toronto attending a nouwen conference and the week after there's a conference on social work & spirituality in town that i'm hoping to catch as well. stay tuned! :D
Labels: social change/action
2 Comments:
I am curious about the conference on social work & spirituality...I wonder what insights that conference will bring...update please! =P
hey man... where exactly are you now?? we can swap social work school stories in a few months' time... i just got accepted at hku!! whooo.... and we're coming back (if your in yvr) in august for summer con! double whoooo!!
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