Loteria and La Rosa: Holding the Beauty and the Thorns

This season, I’ve been reflecting on the Loteria card La Rosa (The Rose). At first glance, it represents beauty, love, tenderness, and growth. But we can’t forget that every rose has its thorns.
 
La Rosa (The Rose) feels especially meaningful in our CANS and TCOM work. We are constantly asked to hold complexity. To see strengths and needs at the same time. To notice what is blooming while also tending to what is sharp, guarded, or hurting.
 
In many of the children and families we work with, the “thorns” often show up first. A youth may present with anger, withdrawal, defiance, or hypervigilance. A caregiver may appear disengaged, overwhelmed, or resistant. But if we pause and look more closely, those thorns are rarely random. They are protective. They formed for a reason.

Just like a rose grows thorns to survive.
 
When we rate items on the CANS, whether we are looking at trauma symptoms, behavioral/emotional needs, or caregiver stress, La Rosa (The Rose) reminds us that what looks sharp may once have been lifesaving. Our role is not to shame the thorn but to understand what it has been protecting.
 
Using La Rosa As A Tool In Practice
La Rosa (The Rose) can be used intentionally in assessment, supervision, and direct practice.

​With youth or caregivers, you might ask:

• What feels like it’s blooming in your life right now?
• What strengths are growing, even if they’re small?
• Where do you feel prickly or overprotective?
• What do your “thorns” protect?

In Supervision, La Rosa (The Rose) can guide reflective conversations:

• Are we seeing only the thorns in this case?
• Where is the beauty that may be harder to notice?
• How are we honoring both resilience and pain in our ratings?

 
In team meetings, this metaphor can help reframe difficult behaviors. Instead of asking, “Why are they acting this way?” we might ask, “What has this thorn been protecting?”
 
This shift aligns deeply with the TCOM principles: understanding context, centering the person’s story, and using shared language to drive meaningful care planning.

Growth Takes Tending
Roses don’t bloom without care. They need water, sunlight, pruning, and protection. Healing works the same way.
 
When we identify actionable needs in the CANS, we’re not labeling a family; we’re identifying where tending is needed. When we identify strengths, we’re naming the blossoms that can be nurtured.
 
La Rosa (The Rose) also reminds us that growth is seasonal. There are times of blooming, and times that feel dormant. That doesn’t mean growth has stopped; it may simply be happening underground.
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Looking Ahead
As we move forward into this next season, I invite you to carry La Rosa (The Rose) into your work.
 
Notice the blossoms. Honor the thorns. Tend to what needs care. And remember that even in the most complex cases, something is always growing.

Loteria and the CANS