Jon (I Don’t Need You, I Don’t Need Nobody)
Jon has no dreams of a bright future. His outlook on life is completely negative. He often wears dirty clothes. He dislikes school and avoids attending. He is disrespectful and uses vulgar language when angry. Why does Jon behave this way? At home, Jon’s mother is consumed by her untreated mental illness. Sometimes she rages. Sometimes she cries. Most of the time she is emotionally or physically unavailable to her children; she always finds time for her boyfriends. Jon must be an adult. He must wake up independently and get himself ready for school, without an alarm clock. If he misses the bus, he is blamed for being irresponsible and lazy. He must cook for himself and his younger siblings. He must do his own laundry. He must put himself to bed at night. He longs for time with his father, who makes promise after unfulfilled promise to his son. When things get really bad at home, Jon seeks refuge on the streets in search of love and guidance. He is now on probation.
Jon needed a reliable, trustworthy adult to help him deal with the realities of his life, but he didn’t know it. He was tough, and he was grown. He didn’t need anybody telling him what to do. He didn’t need a Mentor; however, Jon’s PASSWORD Mentor wouldn’t go away. He continued to come around for 18 months. Jon found that he was beginning to like this guy. He wasn’t like the others. He really understood what it was like to survive. He knew how to stay safe. He was cool, even though he wasn’t in a gang. He knew what it was like to have a Dad who promised to come around but didn’t. He knew what it was like to deal with a mom who acted crazy. He even seemed to know what it was like to have no one. He listened to Jon’s thoughts. He bought an alarm clock when he learned how difficult it was for Jon to be on time to school. Best of all, he knew how to help Jon have fun like the other kids his age. Attention, one of Jon’s passwords.
