When you think of the phrase hostile environment what do you think of? War? Unsafe?
Danger? But never home, right? But that wasn’t his reality. His name is Reuben, and this
is his story. A place that you’d think was hostile was much closer to him, in fact it was his
home. At first, you may think that he suffered from physical abuse from the word
‘hostile’ he actually experienced something else, for damaging mentally. Reuben didn’t
come from money, and he was forced to work from a young age resulting in exploitation
of him by many employers who saw him and took advantage. He went to school with all
the other kids and acted like he belonged even though the hours he wasn’t at school he
was at work. Trying to support his single mother who suffered from chronic pain. He told
us he doesn’t blame his mum and if it happened again, he’d do it all over again. For a
mother who didn’t even love him half as much as he loved her. Even though he worked
day and night the money was never enough and the guilt that shouldn’t have even felt
was immense. Like tide in the ocean hitting land until one big wave erupts and the
shorelines suddenly gone. When there wasn’t any food left on the table his mum would
fault him for not doing enough and that’s how he felt. That he was never enough.
” Grandad?” Lucy asked.
As Reuben opened his eyes he smiled at the sight of his eldest granddaughter at his
bedside.
“Hello Lucy, how are you?” He replied.
“I’m good I’ve come to give you your medication ” Lucy urged.
“What for?” he asked, then he fell out of consciousness again.
Reuben now suffers from dementia and bipolar disorder. The doctors believe that his
upbringing could have heavily contributed to this. Though social workers would describe
this environment as “hostile”, it was no such thing to Reuben. In fact, he would describe
this place much more warmly, more fondly. Home.