I was thinking last week about the different relationships I have with teens at Terra Nova. Each is unique and I learn different things from each of them. It makes me glad that we were created each with our own purpose in mind. Each with our own joys, weaknesses and failures. Each with dreams, gifts and abilities. How boring it would be if we always thought and acted in the same way! Or if we didn’t have free will and God was sitting up in heaven making all our choices for us like pieces on a chess board. We wouldn’t have as much of an opportunity to learn from each other. I learned this week that being alone scares one of my youth more than anything else in the world. That people won’t accept her. To some it may seem irrational. Like: come on, you have a family and lots of friends. How could you still fear being alone? But we all have a need to be accepted and to feel loved by others. We long for human relationships whether we vocalize it or not. Terra Nova helps to fulfill this need through the relationships we have with teens. A success story or a friendly smile from a teen will brighten my day no matter what. If they want to talk about something specific or just fill me in about their day, I love to listen. I want to be a support and an encourager through the work that I am able to do.

Enjoy the sunshine!