Apr 15, 2009

Growing Up

I had a wonderful discussion today with a young man named "Brian". Brian was in a very happy mood. He and I had a nice long visit. 

Brian had been to visit someone in his family recently from whom he was estranged. This was something he had been very anxious about in the past, so overcoming this was a great boost to his sense of being!

Brian is doing many things to straighten out his life, including being a good husband, getting and holding down a job, and staying clean and sober. And he feels great and secure about that!

I asked Brian what equipped him to be making all these changes. He was very quick to answer: "It's my wife and new family. I'm just growing up."

I didn't actually know Brian's history, so I asked him to describe his life before. "I rode trains. I drank heavily. I grew up in a place where I was heavy into drugs by the time I was a young teenager and that continued for nearly 10 years." But he grew up. Brian found he had something to live for.

One day Brian woke up to discover that he had grown older. He saw people in their 30's, 40's, even 50's who still acted like he was in his teens. He realized that he didn't want to be that way. Brian was quick to let me know that he doesn't want to judge these folks. He knows that they have their reasons for being how they are, but he also knows that he doesn't want to be that way any more!

I know that Brian had a lot of help growing up. I thank the countless workers who helped him over the course of almost a decade of trouble: social workers, religious workers, strangers who gave him something to eat, people who smiled at him on a bad day, and other street dependent youth who helped him survive. All played a part in keeping Brian alive and well enough to reach the point he is now.

And I pray that myself, other workers, citizens in the cities and towns visited by street youth across America (and beyond) can do this for the many other folks who need it.

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