Then he lunged at me. For a moment I thought he was about to attack me, and I stood up from my chair, but he did not attack. He hugged me. He held tightly to my waist and sobbed. “Please don’t,” he wailed. “I like talking to you.” I held my arms up like wings, trying to understand what was happening. Embracing children in the program was not conducive to their progress. It was a form of parental love. In certain sessions, we deconstructed forms of touch, such as hugs and kisses on the cheek or forehead. But these took place in a controlled, heavily monitored environment, and they were meant to
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