An hour or two before I was scheduled to depart UBH, Brenda, the Ornamental Chinese Psychiatrist began a group session. She was carrying a rather large over inflated white beach ball with words scribbled all over it: Statements, questions, ponderings, et cetera.
“Hello everyone, ready for a new session?” She cheerfully greeted all at Our Table of Misfits.
Some group grunt of ‘Yeah, sure.” from my friends.
“This is the exercise,” Brenda began. “This beach ball has words written on it.”
This was completely obvious to all of us.
“We are going to toss it about and who ever catches it will look where their right thumb lands and upon which words, sentences, statements, questions and then respond to the group with your feelings.”
I got up from my chair and went over to the water cooler and sat down.
Sal got up from his seat and walked to the opposite side of the room and found a chair.
Jacob got up and followed Sal to another chair.
Brenda looked at me and said, “Lance, you are always so animated and such a good participant, don’t you want to participate in this session?”
“Naw Doc. I think I’ll sit this one out. I’m waiting on a bus and do not want to miss it.”
She looked hurt.
After about thirty minutes of the faux beach ball being tossed back and forth, someone threw it back at Brenda’s head, thus ending this physiological too stupid to be stupid idiocrasy. She took her beach ball and walked away.
Then we all resumed our own self-help session as Brenda sheepishly took her leave.
And I continued waiting for my bus (and pondering how much I was going to miss all my wonderful broken friends at UBH)
And even Brenda. (She sincerely tried)
But she was completely out of her league with My Group.
For you see, we had all, already bonded….
Without Her ‘Help.’
We were, were all, residents of the ‘Island of Misfit Toys’
