Chapter 6 - The Resilience Tests
The punch was not the first “test.”
Noah told Dr. Byrne about three others.
Again:
No repeated interrogation by me.
Professionals.
First:
Logan took Noah’s stuffed dinosaur and held it above his head.
“You want it? Take it.”
Noah cried.
Grant watched.
Eventually Logan returned it.
Grant said:
“See? Crying made it take longer.”
Second:
Basketball.
Logan intentionally bumped Noah hard enough to make him fall.
Not a punch.
No injury.
Grant told Noah:
“Get up before you come to me.”
Third:
Phone.
Logan would grab it.
Noah had to say:
“Give it back.”
Loudly.
Could assertiveness practice be useful?
Absolutely.
Not when a seven-year-old does not consent, an adult uses humiliation, and the father grades emotional reaction.
Then Grant made a spreadsheet.
I almost laughed when my attorney showed me.
NOAH RESILIENCE.
Columns:
Trigger.
Cry duration.
Self-advocacy.
Seeks Claire.
Seeks Grant.
Recovers without intervention.
There.
Data.
My son had become a project.
Notes:
June 3:
Toy taken.
Immediate Claire call.
Poor recovery.
June 12:
Basketball contact.
Cried 4 min.
Would not reengage.
June 21:
Phone challenge.
Improved verbal response.
Then:
Need higher-intensity test before custody filing.
My hands went cold.
The neighborhood gathering was higher intensity.
May you like
Grant had not simply failed to stop Logan.
He had been escalating.
