TRANSCENDERS
There was a report in the newspaper about a psychologist’s study of “transcenders.” These transcenders were children, who lived through impossible childhoods and went on to become successful. They “transcended” their surroundings, and refused to become victims. One girl, Elizabeth, was abandoned by her mother, raised in a small West Virginia town by an abusive aunt and a lecherous uncle. Elizabeth didn’t seem to have a chance. However, when her impoverished family couldn’t even provide a bathtub, and a school counselor complained she was dirty, she made the swim team so she could get a daily shower. Too poor to dream of owning a clarinet or violin, she joined the school band anyway, playing any instrument available. Psychologists now believe that people like Elizabeth, called “transcenders” could yield clues to help many troubled children. Karen Northcraft, a psychiatric social worker in Evansville, Ind., taped 20 hours of conversation with Elizabeth, the subject of her doctoral dissertation. Elizabeth told Ms. Northcraft of bone-breaking beatings…
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