Shaun had not spoken to his two daughters in 4 years. It was a huge source of pain that he brought to his regular meetings with Rachel, Shaun’s mentor. A prized possession was a box of Christmas gifts he had sent to the girls, which had been returned. Despite the hurt of it having been sent back, it was his proof that he never forgot them, that they were always in his thoughts.
During the early days after release, Rachel helped him hold on to hope and focus on building his life, ready to work towards re-establishing contact with the girls. He managed to get a flat and some work, and in time his life was fairly stable. His next focus was a desperate attempt to save up funds for a lawyer to fight his case to see his daughters again. It was a slow business.
Reconnected
One day Shaun excitedly called his Mentor. “Rachel, you will never guess what! I’ve spoken to my eldest daughter! And she wants to come and live with me!”
As the story of his eldest unfolded, full of tragic twists, the positive side of it all was that she was now in a position to reconnect with her Dad with the full support of the authorities. They started to be in daily contact and to rebuild on those lost years. Although due to lockdown, he couldn’t visit her, she was in no doubt of his love for her.
This changed everything. Shaun would get the official support he needed to challenge the court’s previous decision and be able to see his beloved daughter, even have her live with him. Over the course of a week, the whole outlook of reconnecting with his girls had become full of hope and possibilities.