Charlie's Therapist

The school recommended to Charlie's parents
That he come to see me
After the incident
With his piano teacher

I should point out
That when I was alive
I was very serious
About doctor-patient confidentiality
But now that I've been dead
And dead for longer than Charlie's been dead
It seems rather pointless

Charlie was lying

About the teacher

I knew it the minute I saw him
I knew he was lying

You work with kids enough
You become adept at figuring that stuff out

Still, I sat with him
I talked to him
I asked him questions

He was very responsive
For a high school student

Too responsive for someone
Having just gone through
The sort of ordeal he described

I find that people who are quick to discuss their problems
Normally don't have any

What he did avoid talking about was his home life
So I started suspect
That perhaps what he was projecting onto his piano teacher
Were the actions of someone else
Close to him

After further discussions with him
I could tell that the real problem
Was the pressure he felt
To succeed at something

His younger brother was praised on a regular basis by his parents
Leaving Charlie to feel inadequate

The piano lessons were his mother's idea
And when Charlie resisted them
She simply pushed the issue

He felt backed into a corner
And concocted this story
About being sexually abused by his teacher

I'm not excusing his behavior
But it was my job to understand
Why he lied
And I believe I did

Unfortunately, I had to get Charlie
To admit that he was lying
And that proved to be complicated

I asked his parents to come in
And speak with me
To try and determine the best way
To go about
Getting the truth out of their son

Before I could even suggest
That Charlie might be fabricating his story
His mother was asking me
When he could begin playing piano again

I explained to her
That this situation was traumatic for Charlie

In my head, I reasoned that even though the story
Was clearly a lie
Charlie was so resistant to the idea of playing music
I was scared to think of what he might do
If he was forced into it again

I told her that it would be my recommendation
That he not be allowed to play piano anymore

She became incredibly upset
Stood up and pointed a finger at me
Calling me all sorts of names

I distinctly remember
The smell of alcohol on her breath

She got within inches of me
And said--

'You think I'm going to let something like this stop him?  Do you know how much money I've sunk into this all these years?  It's the only thing he's any damn good at.'

I reminded her
That her son
Was telling people
He had been molested
And yes, that should be enough to stop her
If she gave a damn about her son

That was when she slapped me

I was a bit taken aback
But before I could say anything
She was out the door

Charlie's father just sat there and listened the entire time
He didn't even blink when his wife struck me
Then when she stormed out
He got up
And informed me
That they would no longer be needing my services anymore

. . . . .

The next day, I went to Charlie's school
And because I was still the psychiatrist on record
As treating Charlie
They called him out of class
And let me speak to him in one of the meeting rooms

I pleaded with him
To tell the truth about his teacher
But he wouldn't listen

I explained to him
That he was effectively destroying
This woman's reputation
But he just kept staring at me
Not saying a word

After awhile, I left the room
And the school
And hadn't thought about Charlie
Until I was asked to come speak here today

I don't know what happened
After my last interview with him
But if you want my professional opinion
He was raised in a home with no morals or moral guidance

I wouldn't be surprised to find out
That he became a pathological liar
Or a serial killer

If that sounds cold or clinical
I apologize
But I didn't come here
To give a pleasant eulogy

What I found in my work
Is that some people are given insurmountable odds
And fail to overcome them

It's not their fault
But the rest of us
Do need to be made aware of them

It's my experience that Charlie ruined one woman's life

And I would be very surprised to find out
That she was the only one