Worlds Apart

I was called to Elmhurst hospital last night around 7:45pm for a SAVI case. This one was interesting because she felt extremely sexually violated by a group of females. I can't go into specifics, but I unknowingly stepped into a criminal web so extensive that she was cuffed to the hospital bed and guarded by two officers. I was getting three different stories from the social worker, police officers, and survivor.

My initial meeting with the survivor was warm, emotional, and desperate. Her demeanor shifted to hatred and anger once she learned I could legally not help with her request. At first, I was sympathetic and pushed my help on her. When I realized that was not working I started to become irritated. I could think of at least ten other fun things I could be doing with my time as it was a Saturday night during Fashion Week. I stood by the bed watching her sob with her back to me and thought, I should just leave. I was learning more and more about the case against her and didn't understand why SAVI was even involved.

Then I remembered the SAVI training sessions. Sometimes you have to take a step back and let the survivor grieve in silence. You also have to remove all of the external circumstances of the case and focus on the emotional state of the survivor. So I took a breathe and told her I would wait on the other side of the curtain to make sure the doctor would examine her. I told her I was leaving a card with SAVI's number on her bed and hoped she would contact them for her own recovery. The first two hours were tense and my only saving grace was the sweet correctional officer who could not believe I work these cases voluntarily.

As the third hour approached I realized there was a shift in the survivor's attitude towards me. She was more accepting of my presence and began to open up about what happened (an edited version of what the police told me). I could see the experience was really upsetting to her, so I chose to only focus on making her feel better. I shifted the conversation to her family, which led to silly conversations about life and TV shows. We share a love for A&E and Bravo reality shows. We actually started quizzing each other on past episodes and laughed like old friends wasting time. We are both turning 29 soon and share similar astrological signs, yet our life paths could not be more different. Life is funny in that way. We truly exist in different worlds, yet have so much in common at the same time.

By the fourth hour she kept apologizing for how she treated me in the beginning. She thanked me for standing by her even when she did her best to push me away. She said I reminded her of her best friends and was so happy that I was with her. At one point I was talking to one of the officers on guard, while her partner was talking to the survivor. Suddenly, the survivor yelled "Hey, Aries is my friend you can have your partner back. I want Aries back over by me!" We all looked at each other and started laughing. It was so odd yet wonderful having that moment.

Everything in the hospital was constantly delayed, but the other officers eventually came and took the survivor away in shackles. It was almost as if the parents came home and interrupted our small party. I was so thankful that the atmosphere had become so much lighter than when I had first arrived. We said our goodbyes and knew our paths would not cross again. I hope I will at least be a good memory for her. I hold on to her words when she told me that I reminded her that there are still genuinely good human beings out there.

You never know what or who life will bring into your path. Scorpio and I continue to learn so much about ourselves, others, and life in general through SAVI.

*Aries*