The Story of Jade
“Here we go again…” Jade exclaimed while in the CPS office waiting for her case worker to go down the long list of foster families to call and see if they had room for her. This would be the fourth home Jade had been to in the last 2 years. This process is getting really old for a 14 year old girl. One more chance and it’s off to a facility until she turns 18. This home has to work!
Once Jade gets settled in her new “home”, which doesn’t feel much like a home, her new foster mom, Betty, noticed that Jade loves to sing and play guitar (which she had never owned for herself). Betty then remembered a flyer she got while at the local farmers market the weekend before. So, Betty grabbed the flyer and hands it to Jade. The flyer talked about an open mic and jam session night that would be the next evening. It looked like fun, so Jade agreed to go.
As Jade and Betty walked through the door of the downtown space, she suddenly somehow felt safe (something she hasn’t felt for a long time). There was a violinist and an acoustic guitar player playing together in one corner, while in the back of the room was a computer with cables running through the wall to the next room. It didn’t take long for someone to come by and ask her if she wanted to record something. It turned out the next room was a recording studio with microphone and the other cable for a guitar.
Another person came up to her and introduced her to this really cool looking woman who was strumming her guitar and singing with a beautiful voice in one of the other corners of the room. The lady encouraged her to sit down and handed her a guitar to play with her. Jade felt so much weight lift off of her as she played the guitar. Then, this lady invited her to a show she was putting on that next weekend. Jade had never been invited to a concert before.
By the time Jade left the building that evening, she had been invited into a support system with professional musicians and an appointment for counseling was set up for that next week in the same space as the open mic/jam session. Not only this, but the next day Betty got a phone call from the space asking if Jade needed a guitar of her own. So, on the day of the show Jade was invited to, the “cool musician lady” handed Jade a guitar and all the supplies she needed for it (strings, gig bag, picks, tuner, and capo).
Now Jade had the coping tools she needed to express herself and a community which brought her in and helped her feel wanted and supported. This led to Jade opening up enough to be the showcase artist at the next open mic/jam session along with her new Creative Skills Coach. She then used the DIY recording studio to record some songs she wrote with the help of her support system. Her self-esteem went through the roof and felt a calm whenever she entered the space.
Jade had all the tools she needed now, and it allowed her to process her emotions and avoid the negative behaviors she had which kept her from staying in one place in the past. Jade eventually went back to live with her biological family, but she was able to keep her support system along with her during the transition.
At Maker Story Creative Collective, this is a story of what we want to provide for our adolescent partners. Jade was provided a safe place to create, explore, heal, and belong. Our support systems create opportunities for all of these things to occur. If you would like to be involved with a story like this, please consider being an Individual Partner today!