Whenever teachers assigned group projects, I would see his face fall ever so slightly as everyone else paired off before he had a chance.
No child should become familiar with that feeling.
Yet somehow, my son did.
For illustrative purposes only
A Counselor Who Saw Him
There was one exception.
Mrs. Carter, the school’s guidance counselor.
She had a remarkable habit of noticing students whom everyone else overlooked. More than once, Evan came home mentioning conversations he’d had with her.
Sometimes she checked in after a difficult day.
Other times she simply reminded him that high school wasn’t forever.
At the time, neither of us fully understood how important those conversations were.
One evening during his sophomore year, I found him sitting alone on our back porch after dinner. The sun had already disappeared below the horizon. He sat staring into the darkness with his hands folded together.
