Henry: Three Messages

1. Address by Thom Garfat

Henry Maier has taught me many things. I have never been his student, and he has always been my teacher.

I expected that others would talk about Henry's influence on practice, education and training – like how he has brought an awareness of attachment and connectivity, rhythmicity and play, or learning and developmental approaches to the field. Or about how, even from his writings in the early 50's, Henry was encouraging an under-educated population of helpers to think about how theory could inform their work and make them better child and youth care workers. So, I decided to leave that to them.

I live and work in the world of direct practice. My days are filled with encounters with young people, families and the staff of the organisations and governments who offer services to them.

In the professional world in which I work, most everyone I work with, be they direct line staff in a small program in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia or senior administrators in governments, almost everyone knows about Henry Maier. Some know him from his writings, some from his workshops, and others from those of us whose teaching and training has been influenced by him, or who try, in our own (always inadequate) fashion, to speak his thoughts and ideas for him. Many, many people, then, only know Henry indirectly, through their experience of us who have known him directly. And therefore, the influence of Henry on the field, can be partially assessed by looking at his influence on those of us who are practitioners in the field.

I guess then that for me the question of the influence of Henry Maier on our work, comes down to a question of his influence on me. Not because I think I am important, but because I understand that I can only know the world through my experience of it, and thus I can only share that which I know of Henry based on my experience of him, or based on how my life and work has been affected by my experience of him.

So, how has my experience of Henry Maier – through reading his works, learning from his teaching and knowing him personally – how has it been influenced ....?

A short story, if I might.

Yesterday, I was trying to come here with Air Canada, and we all had one of those flying experiences that we tell stories about afterwards. First the plane was late in arriving in Toronto. Then after a long and mad dash through the corridors of the airport, stalled along the way by aggravated customs oficers who were determined to make everyones' day as miserable as their own, we finally boarded a hot, cramped plane, only to be told that the flight was going to be late in leaving, because a tail light bulb was burned out. Millions of dollars worth of aircraft, stalled by a little lightbulb. We waited, and waited, and waited for a truck to arrive to hoist the mainenance man up high enough to change the bulb. And when it finally arrived the truck pulled up to the back of the aircraft . . . and the ladder was not long enough, and it could not lift him high enough, and so we all waited some more. Agitation grew as people thought about those waiting for them at the other end, or about connections missed or other travellers lost in another airport hoping to connect with their friends at the end of this flight. Finally, after two hours of waiting in this little metal tube of uncirculated air, we left, only to be told after half an hour in flight that we were turning back because of the weather! First it was the lightbulb and now it was the lightning. Then of course, to add fuel to already flaming tempers, we circled the airport for another hour waiting for an opening in the tight schedule of other airplanes coming and going.

Finally on the ground, the flight cancelled, new tickets issued for the next day, and temperatures rising in the faces of the passengers, we were all shuttled off to a hotel for the night. Well, the poor check-in clerks at the hotel! Suddenly faced with a snarling mob of unhappy travellers, they were doing their best to be pleasant. But as always, the group (we had become a group by then) the group was not being appeased. Grumblings and mumblings and loud demanding voices filled the lobby of the hotel. Henry, it was time to do something.

Well, it was a hotel like this one, and on the check-in counter they had a basket of apples. As we waited, I ate an apple – and it was good – fresh, crisp and just what the doctor ordered – so I decided that everyone should have an apple. I took the basket, announced that the apples were good, said everyone should have one, and tossed one to a man I was exchanging complaints with just moments earlier. Then I tossed another ... 

Some people wanted one and took a bite, some didn't and tossed theirs back, soon a few were tossing apples to one another, playing catch with nature's bounty. I took three and tried to juggle – but I don't do this well so someone else picked them up and juggled away while we watched.

As we did this, some of the focus shifted to ourselves rather than the hotel clerks, a few of the grumbles turned to smiles and the danger of a small riot passed. Apples in hand, registered for our rooms, we trucked off to bed.

*   *   *

In the rhythm of tossing and juggling, the world had changed just a little for just a moment. Thank you Henry, because of you, a bad moment was a little better. This I learned from Henry Maier: when you don't know what else to do, you can always play.

Here are some other things I have learned from Henry Maier:

• Play is serious if you let it be fun.
• You cannot be in-dependent, if you have never been dependent.
• You cannot be without doing, nor do without being.
• Simplicity is profound if you don't make it complicated.
• Touch is good.
• Silence is very loud.
• Love is a way of being.

But, most important, I have learned that every person, especially every child, needs to 'have someone' – someone who has faith in you, who believes in you and believes in your potential – someone who is willing to be your guide, the way you need them to be. Someone who likes you for who you are and encourages you to be who you can be. Someone who appears to enjoy being with you, without any demands for change. Someone who is able and willing to express all that, not through what they say to you, but in how they are with you. Someone who welcomes you in to their world and shows an interest in yours. Someone who is simply able to be with you, while you are being you.

I thank you Henry, and so do the children.

Thom

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2. A word from Varda Mann

Henry Maier's work has been part of my professional life since 1976. I was hired as a  young psychologist to work in a large residential treatment agency in Montreal, Quebec. My mandate: to support child and youth care workers to make "psychologically informed" interventions with kids.  I was at a loss!!! Henry's work was magical for me.  It bridged the distance between theory and practice and brought theory to life through his meticulous attention to therapeutic moments, and the minutiae of day to day living with kids. 
Even more magical was that Henry wrote about all this in a way that was extremely accessible.  I found myself giving Henry's articles to staff, and they did read them. They were clear, understandable and meaningful...and honored not only the children and youth, but also the workers themselves!

It was not until the International conference in Milwaukee that I met Henry.  I went to his workshop with great excitement, anticipating an interaction with an internationally known scholar.  I found a humble, warm and generous man who within minutes had a large group on the floor, role playing interactions with kids.

In my more recent career as an academic, I have discovered Henry's  work once again...and its magic can be viewed in yet another perspective. I found in Henry the model of a scholar practitioner.  He walks his talk, embodying relatedness, psychological generosity, and interpersonal warmth. 
At the same time, Henry is  rigorous, critical and values excellence. His work is truly inspirational and models the ways in which scholarship can advance practice, and practice can be informed by theory.

Thank you Henry!

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