Girls playing in the snow..

I am getting closer to being an adult. I will soon be in the military. It seems scary to know that I will be responsible for myself. I am excited and I am ready to explore my new life. I am grateful for this second chance at life. This was the best decision my parents made for me. Johnathan B.

I feel that I have accomplished a lot in my program over the past few weeks. I have not only pushed myself but I I have pushed my peers. I have reworked a class to better my GPA. I have had better communication with my family at home. My relationship with my mom is still not where I would like it to be but it is work in progress. I know that I ruined trust and I am working to reestablish that trust but it takes time. I burned many bridges so I do have my work cut out for me. I see that when I am working on my issues, time goes by fast. I am taking things one day at a time and not rushing myself at all. I am getting a lot of work done but the reality is, there is still more to go. I do see light at the end of the tunnel so I won't complain. Ivana C.

I am getting very close to my home pass. A few more days and I will officially be going home for a few days. I am nervous and excited all at the same time. I look forward to seeing my family and going to look at colleges. Being that this is first time being at home since I came to the program, I am not sure what to expect but I cannot wait! I almost found myself being impatient because I am so anxious to go home. Stephen M.

It has been a very stressful weekend for me. I was so excited because I earned level three. I got my vote-up form back on Friday and I was so happy when I seen that I was supported for level three. What I did not know was that it was going to be challenging. I was expecting to walk into this and have to learn new things such as privileges for level three and what I can and cannot do but I did not see myself as being over-whelmed as I was over the weekend. I found that I was very bossy to my peers and I noticed that I need to find the balance of being firm and friendly to my peers. I guess as I look back over this past weekend to see where I could have done something different, I definitely see that I need to work on and that is remembering that before I was a level three, I too was in the same spot that my peers were at and that I am no different and I noticed that I was almost looking down on my peers. I learned quickly that if I am going to gain respect from my peers, I must be willing to give them respect. Great learning experience and I look forward to working out the few wrinkles so that I continue to move forward in my program. -Karen G.

We went on an activity to a horse show at LSUA. I had a great time. It feels good to go off campus and get away from the facility for a while. It really does show me that I came a long way in my program. I worked to earn privileges where I can do things like leave off campus for activities. I look forward to being able to do another activity soon. -Luke I.

I am very close to being done with High School. I am very nervous because I am about to not only be a High School graduate but I am going home. I know that I should be excited but I am nervous and anxious all at the same time. I know that I will do what is right, I am ready to go home and put in use all of the tools that I learned while I was here at Red River. I would like to come back and hopefully be able to staff seminars because seminars have been a huge impact on my life. I will miss all of the staff and my peers that I met along the way during my journey. It has been very tough but well worth it. Mrs. Latrice has been a very special person in my life over the course of my journey. She pushed me when I wanted to give up and she was there at all times when I needed feedback and someone to talk to. She never once sugar-coated any feedback to me at all she was always straight honest with me which I really appreciate because she taught me to always believe in myself. I have seen strength that I was not even aware that I had. There were so many times in my program when I felt like this was not worth it. I can now say that since I am at the end of my program I am glad that I was given this opportunity to become the person that I am today. I have worked hard not only in my program but academically. I never seen myself as a High School graduate. I done many things that I never ever thought that I would do. My definition of being out of my comfort zone is something that I cannot begin to describe. I think that I got the most work done in my program by just being me and doing things that I was uncomfortable with. My self esteem is something that I still struggle with even today. I will continue to work on this even once I am at home. I do feel better about myself but there are times when I feel like I second-guess myself and this tends to get me in trouble but overall I am happy with all that I have accomplished and I look forward to reconnecting with my family at home. -Hannah K.

Helping Others

It has been a long day already. I am ready to do what I need to and get back home to my family. It has definitely been a long journey but I can say that I have learned a lot. One of the things that I find to be valuable for me is that there was a time when I only cared about me and me only. I now have a big heart and I want to help everyone and share some of what I have learned with others. When new kids come into the program, I look forward to assisting them on their journey. Luke I.

Blog from Layne W.

Hi! I hope everyone who reads this is doing good! (: I'm fine, just missing my family. I'm pretty strange sometimes, cause I just forgot what I was going to write. Isn't that amazing? Anywho; "There is a place called happiness. It is a few steps beyond your misgivings. Sometimes to get there you have to take the road of courage down to the street of never-give-up until you reach the field of dreams" I love that quote. I really do. It's beautiful. (: Think on that, young grasshopper. I'll post again soon xox. ~Layne W

Holiday Fun

I had a very good Christmas and New Year! I had plenty of fun with my peers and we actually pulled together as a family and enjoyed all of the activities that they had going on in the facility. We ate plenty of good food and there was hardly a dull moment over the past week. Being able to chill out and lounge around and just have laid back days was fun. Watching LSU beat Iowa State was fun, we danced, joked around and laughed so much at one another being silly. I look forward to spending next year at home with my family. Daniel

New Year's Fun

I had so much fun for New Year's at RRA. To be honest, I did not want to spend the holidays away from family but overall it turned out to be a great day. One thing that I learned was that there are many ways to have fun other than hanging out with friends and doing non-working things. For once in a long time I can honestly say that this was the first time in a few years that I can actually say that I truly enjoyed the holiday. I was sober and I understood what was going on around me and I did not have anyone coming to me on the next day laughing and joking about how crazy I acted the night before. I laughed until my face hurt. I really took many things for granted when I was at home but once I finish my program and I return home I plan to cherish every moment that I can with my loved ones. I even sat back and thought about how I need to be a better example for my siblings because I have two younger siblings that look up to me and I want to be a role model for them. Karen G.