I know that V has bonded to me to some degree. I also know that he has lost hope for his future, at least one that is free of legal entanglements.
His brother ages out of the system next month. His brother is hell bent on drugs, alcohol, and gang things. V will be losing his last bio family member in just over 2 weeks.
So....I noted V's closeness to J4. J4 adores V. V will play with him, help him with his homework, fixes him mac & cheese, draws with him, plays hide and seek, etc. I have started asking V to help take care of J4. I have pointed out how much J4 cares about V and follows him around. Tonight, I didn't even have to ask V to set the water for J4's shower. He did it for him, without my asking. I noticed they were sharing a blanket, watching TV. It was very neat to see.
Maybe V has a hard time bonding to adults, so I thought maybe I could help him bond to a little one. Maybe, having him responsible for someone else...can help him have hope. I know there is hope in J4, as it dances in his eyes. J4 still runs to his "daddy" when a scary part of a tv program is on....or if he just wants to sit in my lap. I think it is good for V to see that if J4 can bond to him and I...that maybe it is ok for V to bond to me. There isn't much that is keeping V from going over the edge to the "dark" side, except maybe a little 7 year old boy.
OK. Maybe I am grabbing at straws here, but I need something here!