Spring is Coming!

I must admit, I am one of those people who loves winter (for the most part). Even as I write this, I have just come from a great morning of skiing, where the sun was shining and the snow was good! Part of me doesn't want winter to end, but there is part of me that is anticipating spring. Winter can be hard on our kids at the centre, and it is clear that they are ready for it to end.

This weekend, we seemed to be having a tougher time than usual with our guys. Tensions were high, tempers were flaring, and overall, they were much more aggressive than usual. We wondered if it was a full moon (it was close enough), we wondered if they were getting squirrely from having been cooped up since November (also true), but we knew that there were lots of other things that were going on in their lives that would be contributing to their anger.

We had addressed their particularly aggressive style of pool playing, which has for weeks been resulting in broken cues, bounced pool balls, and even a ball or two being slammed off the table into walls, shins, or the kitchen sink. Most of them told us that they only played like that when they are mad at someone. They were open with us about how they were feeling, which mostly means that they didn't go out of their way to hide it. We talked to a number of guys who told us about anger management, how they'd been kicked out of their programs, broken noses, told their supervisors off, busted a knuckle, or been kicked out of their homes.

Of course, their anger is often the expression of a deeper hurt. Abandonment, fear, pain, sadness, loneliness, and many other things all play into this as well. The dialogues that have been started, no matter how informal they might be, are important ones. The dark, cold, winter is here, but spring is coming! Right now, we are praying for wisdom as we try to find ways for them to have a healthy outlet for their aggression. Please pray for peace. Pray that it replaces the chaos and the anger in their lives. Pray that we are able to have opportunities for real discussion with them. And pray that we can communicate that spring is coming, both figuratively, and in real life. I would be nowhere without the peace of Christ, and I pray that we can share that with them.