By Pat C.
Beep…Beep…Beep, the alarm clock signals to the students at The Family Foundation School it is time to wake up and begin another day.
Not only is there a designated time for waking up, but also for eating meals, going to class, playing sports or other activites, and going to sleep. This schedule can very demanding to the students and is one of the most disliked features of the school.
Prior to arriving here, most students had no sense of what it means to have a schedule and actually follow it. This was especially true for me.
At home, my parents set out the rules and guidelines I needed to follow: a time to wake up for school, meal times, curfews, and of course the requirement that I attend all my classes. At the time I saw these rules as my parents just wanting to control me, so I did what I thought every normal teenager does: the exact opposite.
I would sneak out after my curfew, rarely come home to eat dinner with the family, woke up whenever I wanted, and skipped school.
I thought I could do whatever I wanted and failed to see the importance of the rules my parents had set for me. Eventually I found myself in loads of trouble and on my way to The Family Foundation School.
When I arrived at FFS, I disliked the routine as much as any other student. I couldn’t stand being told what to do, but I knew that I couldn’t live the way I did at home so I followed the schedule as required. In fact, I really didn’t see the importance of routine until my last home visit.
I had a great visit with my family but I also had a lot of down time. During this down time I began falling into self-pity, thinking about how lonely I’ll be if I stay sober, how I don’t really need to call my sponsor, etc.
Later in the visit I had a conversation with my mother who told me that I am going to need a routine to live by when I graduate: school, a job, church, and meetings.
At first I was resistant, but then I began to realize and accept that my mother was right. I now believe that if I am going to continue the life I have started at FFS and stay sober, I need a routine to live by.
After thinking a lot about what my mother said, I am now able to appreciate the reason why we have a set routine every day. I understand that it is hard to wake up early or to not do exactly what you want to all the time, but the bottom line is that is life.
Successful people don’t go floating through life without goals and guidelines. They live by routines. The students at FFS need to realize that the need for schedules and discipline doesn’t disappear when they leave the school; it really only intensifies.
I understand that the prospect of graduating and leaving FFS can be very exciting. But this excitement can alsp be very dangerous if it isn’t applied in our lives in a positive manner.
As graduation gets closer and closer, I realize that I am going to get exactly what I wanted two years ago: complete control of my life. The difference between then and now is that I now know that I have to take responsibility for all of my actions, good or bad, and that I need to continue to live the life of routine I have started at FFS.
