Of the Black Belt in Resistance

It has been some time, and I can't exactly remember. A social worker who works with children on the street enters the stage in some play and answers the reporter's question on how he pressures his protégés to get their act together approximately like this.

We won't get anywhere with pressure here. Those who testify to resist all have a black belt.

What sounds a bit fatalistic suggests that the street worker knows his craft. He cannot or does not want to give a simple answer. What he offers is empathy, respect, and metaphorical appreciation for the children's long suffering. He does not want it to be ended by a simple magic trick.

I have thought about it for a long time, and what I wrote down today about this has stuck with me.