As Promised...

Mr. GV
Guardian Ad Litem Program
Green Cove Springs, FL

Dear Mr. V -

Your report only goes to reinforce my opinion that the ‘investigation’ done for this case was woefully inadequate at best and grossly incompetent at worst.

You state in your report that ‘the mother appeared to devote minimal attention to the child’s day to day care’ and spoke of ‘limited involvement’ and how my ‘resolve to remain directly involved in the day to day care of the child’ is ‘inadequate.’

I say, BULLSHIT to that Mr. V. You only spoke to people who were around DURING THE DAY. You never bothered to speak to either of his teachers whom I have spoken to on numerous occasions. You never bothered to speak to anyone who knew how close my family was and how very much I am involved in my son's life.

Mr. V, I am not there during the day because I work for a living. Do you think I should I quit my job so I can stay home and take care of my son? Great, I’d love to. Will you see to it that all of our bills are paid, that there is food on the table, that E can afford to go to the college of his choice, and that B and I are cared for in our old age? No? Then, unfortunately, I will have to keep my job.

No sir, I am most certainly NOT an ‘uninvolved’ mother. Are all working parents classified as ‘uninvolved’ or is that a special label reserved only for working mothers?

No I am not there during the day. But I AM the one who gets him up in the morning, gets him dressed, feeds him breakfast, makes his lunch and gets him ready to go in the morning. When I get home from work, we go to the park, we play in the playroom, I get his supper, supervise his bath, get his pajamas on, read him bedtime stories, tuck him into bed and kiss him goodnight. On weekends we go to the park, the zoo, the beach, we play games, watch videos, read books, paint, color, play with his cars, play with his trains...

No, sir, I am most certainly NOT an uninvolved mother. I am just not there during the day. Your report shows that you spoke to the administrative assistant at his school. Why didn’t you just talk to the janitor? Or to one of the groundskeepers? No, the idiot administrative assistant may have never seen me pick him up because when I got to the school she had already gone home. If I were a man would it seem unusual for my spouse to always be seen dropping off and picking up the children? No, of course not, because that is considered normal. We are an atypical household and you are judging us by your outmoded old fogey standards.

You know nothing of us. Of what we went through to have this child. Of our life and how much we love and support each other. Of how much we want to be together.

Since DCF came into our lives and took our son away we call him every night and every night he asks when he will be coming home because as much as he loves his grandma and grandpa he loves his mommy and daddy more. Before DCF came into our lives my son slept in his own bed, in his own room with the door closed and no nightlight. Now he has to have a nightlight and the door must be open. Since DCF so kindly intervened in our lives, my son does not want me out of his sight because he is terrified that he will never see his mommy again because of what one of your workers told him. In our telephone conversations he asks a couple of times a week if someone will come and take him away again.

All in the best interests of the child. Yeah. Right.