I want to know what a letter from a Mom with a runaway should say to keep a relationship open. I also want to know what a runaway, ( who may have very good reasons for running away) can write to let the mother know that he still needs and wants a relationship at a "safer time".

-- sharon greenlaw (sharongreenlaw@msn.com), August 25, 2002

Answers

my counselor gave me a small piece of paper yesterday and it said "IS WHAT I AM ABOUT TO DO GOING TO BRING US CLOSER ?OR PUSH US FARTHER APART"this was to help me with my relationship with my Daughter.as a parent to keep the relationship open i would say that i understand that she may have prioritys that are not the same as mine and will be ready for the childs return when he/she is ready-in the childs time.....how to say it? read the words above and choose your words carefully as for the runaway,what you have written seems perfect for a letter, because it feels real .the word "safer" is very curioius here,if the parent is an abuser then there are other more serious issues to address before i would return if i were a child again .i was quite abused horribly by my mother and ran at 15 years old, pennyless,and homeless to simply end the psychological torture .that abuse was worse than being hit . good luck !

-- julian porter (zinaroo@hotmail.com), August 29, 2002.