Family

Subway is a great backdrop for conversations.
Last week I sat across from a girl named "katie" who has not been to TreeHouse in a while. She just called me out of the blue asking if I wanted to hang out and I jumped at the chance.
She recounted her life for the past 6 months since I've seen her last and it didn't sound very hopeful. Looking at her arms, they are covered in scars from her cutting. On cut in particular on her right forearm reads, "family."
This girl loves her dad. He has been on disability for several years now, and cannot contribute much to her life, but she loves him. He lets her drink and smoke weed at the house. He lets her stay up as late as she wants. He himself does not go to bed until all hours of the night. So it's no surprise that she often does not wake up for school. Since her father sleeps most of the day he does not notice that she is skipping school to sleep.
For this girl, this is normal!
She says she is happy, but I can see past that.
At TreeHouse one of the things we ask of our youth is that they not wear a "mask." Meaning, when you come to TreeHouse, don't pretend to be something you are not. This has always been a hard one for Katie. Her life has been so crazy since she was born, that often she will make up wild stories to cover up how she's really feeling. Even though she tells me with her mouth that she's happy, I can see in her eyes that she's not.
She looks tired, stressed and dirty.
I have no idea what Katie's future will bring. My hope for her is that she will learn to become more truthfully open with those around her. That she will somehow find her worth in God instead of drugs/alcohol/men. And that she will be happy.
If you are reading this and you like to pray, will you join me in praying for this young woman.
Thanks for reading -
peace be with you!
h

Golf Clubs

Hello all who read this!
Last week as I drove home from Chipotle with one of my girls, she began to unpack her anger from the past week. She had almost gotten into a fight at school because some girl was calling her racist names. Valorie was not going to take that from her, and so she stood up for herself. She (at first) politely asked her to stop. When the girl didn't, Valorie got a bit more aggressive and started yelling at this girl.
Long story short, they both ended up in the office! After Valorie explained to the counselor what had happened, she was released to go back to class.
She was telling me this in the car, and she said, "That girl just doesn't understand." I asked her what she didn't understand. She replied with, "That girl does not even know me, or my past, or what I've gone through. I remember a time where my mom was so high on drugs and living with her boyfriend, that she left me and my siblings to fend for ourselves for 9 months. Sure she came back to check on us when she wasn't so high that she forgot about us, but for the most part, we were on our own. So you're darn right that girl doesn't understand!
She has no idea what it's like to look at your 2 year old sister crying because she's hungry. She has no idea what it was like when my brother and I broke into a building and smashed in the vending machines with our dads golf clubs to get food for her. She just has no idea."
As usual I am speechless. These kids amaze me every day in the things they have survived. When I was in fourth grade, I was in girl scouts, softball and sunday school. I totally understand her instinct to fight. She has had to fight for her life since she was born. Currently her mom is sober from drugs and is trying very hard to patch up their relationship. Valorie speaks so highly of her mother for coming back and making an effort. I am simply amazed that she even has the strength to get up in the morning, let alone forgive those who have wronged her.
Praise God for this little girl (who is 18 now), Praise God for those golf clubs, and praise God for her learning to forgive!