#cps tag

[long-live-the-kingless-queen]

[witch-i-may-and-witch-i-might]

[trauma-is-the-ninja-way]

[witch-i-may-and-witch-i-might]

[ceruleangold]

Us, approximately 5 million times in a number of reports to CPS over several months: “Hey, we are extremely concerned about this parental neglect case.”

CPS: “We will not do anything because the family lives here and thus they are safe.”

Us: “Uh. We don’t have 24 hour attention on this family and cannot guarantee the children’s safety.”

CPS: *crickets*

CPS: “It is actually totally fine that the parent is refusing to let us inside the apartment and refusing all interactions with our investigators. This is totally standard and not a weird anomaly ceruleangold has never seen.”

[We’re suddenly made aware these children have been left home alone for multiple days and verified this through systems we have.]

CPS: “Just kidding. We suddenly care and will be removing the children.”

Just once I’d like to have CPS get something right without the runaround. I beg of thee.

[long-live-the-kingless-queen]

[ceruleangold]

CPS was a joke today.

[ceruleangold]

A new family came into shelter a few hours ago and the brief communication was heavy. Mom was embarrassed that her newborn smelled bad because she didn't have soap sensitive for the baby's skin. We talked order of protections, CPS, sixteen years of abuse, and an inability to reconcile the man she loves with the man who harms her.

My body's sympathetic system has been on a kick lately where my eyes well with empathy at the plight of others and damn if that isn't damning. What's worse is that my co-workers (most who I consider friends) look so perplexed and uneasy about the whole thing. I've been here two years and I still feel it just as much as the first few months. There is a sense of gratitude, though, because feeling something so intensely reminds me of what we're working towards.