My holidays had a slightly delayed start, with this morning taken out to attend a Mandatory Notification course. It was my third time since arriving in South Australia nearly 8 years ago so, of course, I knew what to expect.
Except it's always harrowing.
I always think it will be fine, but it's not. I'm so glad reporting abuse is a mandatory part of our job, but I hate being reminded of the desperate situation some children are in. I hate being reminded that children die at the hands of adults. Or that children can be crushed and scarred because of the evil actions of grown ups.
At the end they showed Daniel Valerio's battered, smiling face and it broke my heart all over again. I can't believe it's been 20 years since he died. I read the newspapers back then and the horrific details of his abuse still remain vivid in my mind.
I came home to my beautiful boys with their sweet, smiling faces. At 8 and 6, nothing bad has touched them. They're well loved, respected and protected - at least as much as any parent can protect her children.
Still picturing Daniel's face, I tickled Xavier and said, "Life's hard, isn't it?"
He laughed and agreed: "It's hard catching Pokemon."
If only all our children had such hard lives.
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