The Parasite

James Silver clearly represented a large group of Residents common to all federal, state, and locally funded programs: the parasite. Long ago, when he realized he could use his polio-victim body as a lever for attention, he manipulated everyone around him so he wouldn't have to do a thing. Choosing to spend most of his time in a wheelchair even though he could get around with arm crutches made himappearto be helpless, so early he learned how to manipulate those who didn't know how mobile he really was.

Ignorance can sometimes work to one's advantage. I first met Jim before I read his file and I'm glad I did. Because when the Med Aide wheeled him in, the first thing I noticed was not the plastic ankles he proudly left bare, but the arm crutches cleverly attached to the chair. So without succumbing to the condition of helplessness he wanted to project I simply said, "Welcome, Jim. Now, if you'll just step this way, I'll show you your room."

How I could miss the new arrival's surprise? He stared at me with that sheepish glare that said, "You blew my cover." Naturally, he assumed all Staff had read his file so I shouldknowthat he was crippled for life andhadto be waited on hand and plastic foot. His surprise turned to resentment and now his stare said, "You fink.I'mthe boss of my life and everyone around it."

But before he protested out loud, I de-sheathed his crutches and had him on his wobbly feet. It was a moment of great drama for him, Staff, the ambulance driver and Assistant, but because I wasn't in the know, it all flew over my head.

I learned later, when studying his file, that it was recommended that Staff go along with his farce until the boy could feel comfortable with his surroundings and ask for therapy. Anyone who's dealt with aberrant behavior knows it's far more difficult to undo a wrong than to set it right in the beginning. So by an accident, an outright oversight, I skipped to the chase and established a rapport that few had ever had with the polio victim. Because after he'd overcome his first-meeting shock, we got along perfectly. After all, how can you argue with a person who has called your bluff and refuses to play your game?

Unfortunately for Jim, during his stay at Sugar Loaf I was promoted to Assistant so didn't see him much. This allowed him to revert to manipulating so people would treat him like a basket case. They wheeled him to the front of the food line, painstakingly dismantled his complex wheelchair when he went to town, patiently waited outside the shower while he used more water than anyone else. Slowly he became the parasite once again.

Meanwhile, on the official level, hedidqualify for all kinds of financial assistance programs. But to me that didn't mean he should be assisted in everything he did. Everyone, in spite of his challenge, should use what abilities he has. He should have enough self dignity to WANT to assert himself. So I pushed James Silver to finish high school, walk to meals and to his room, even limit the number of hours he vegetated in front of the TV and his precious video games. I treated him like a real person instead of a basket case and he responded well. But he'd played his cripple scenario for

so long and with so many people that when I wasn't there, he manipulated them mercilessly. When the cat's away...

The last report I saw on James showed that after moving to Supervised Housing in town, he'd gained over one hundred pounds. And because of that couldn't, of course, get around by himself and HAD to be wheeled. A Visiting Support Team had to make his meals and go the whole nine yards. From my perspective it was too bad that others hadn't overlooked his condition and treated him the way Tommy MacInvey wanted everyone to see him: as a person with a heart and desire to be autonomous. I think James Silver could have lived a far more dignified life by becoming self-sovereign. But overcoming a mechanical problem can seem impossible to some. To them, being a parasite is okay.