Therapist: Juan is a fifteen year old boy, strong and well developed for his age but his face has a childish air about it and his clothes and his appearance are rather unkempt. In the last academic year he was doing agricultural studies, which he failed; this year he wants to do mechanics at a different professional vocational training centre. I have been seeing him for the last ten months on Tuesdays and Thursdays, face to face. He refused to use the couch at the very beginning saying that it reminded him of assassinated Roman emperors. He is very fond of drawing so he asked me in the very first session if he could do that. We have pen and paper available but he hardly uses them now.

As I open the door he has his back to it; he turns round suddenly and pretends to shoot me, as in a Western. He is smiling. He sits