All photos from Adventure Break - boudering in Bishop, California.

Reflections from a New Student By Zachery W. If I have learned one thing so far in my two weeks of being here, it's that life here is truly what you make it. Your time here can be spent either being angry, depressed and pissed at the world or positive and realize that you can get incredible amounts of schoolwork done and experience a unique way of life. This can be an extremely positive experience or a complete waste of six months.   Life here is very simple, you live in a plat with a handful of other kids and work together to keep the place running. It can be hard living with the same kids every single day, but hopefully you'll make some good friends and just learn to relax when someone is getting on your nerves. I thankfully have made some pretty cool friends and whenever I need someone to talk to, either they or staff are always there.   In the end, my time here so far has been positive and unique. Knowing that I am going to be here for at least six months is very overwhelming, but I got to just keep going and keep my head up. I always try to stay positive and make it and I am determined to make my life absolutely amazing. Book Review By Tina Hendrickson, MSW   Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Meth Addiction by David Sheff This is a first hand perspective that chronicles a father's journey of his son's addiction and the destructive lifestyle and the painful effects on family and friends. The book describes the father's debate with himself as to his own role in "causing" his son's addiction, as well as the struggle to aid/persuade an adult child to enter treatment as well as the father's own path to recovery from his son's addiction. David Sheff combines first hand accounts with research to provide a very entertaining, enlightening and educational yet painful read.   In his writing Sheff sites the National Institute on Drug abuse (NIDA), David Smith the founder of the Haight Ashbury Clinic in San Francisco, the World Health Organization, several Hazelden publications as well as several other sources that he explored in his own search to understand not only his son's plight but to gain clarity of his own role as a father of an addicted adult child. Sheff includes a resources list at the end of his book that spans the topics of addiction, AA , Al-Anon, prevention, family recovery, and divorce. He also includes several useful web site resources in the appendices.   Sheff describes the hesitance that he and his son experienced with AA and Al-Anon's concept of a higher power. Sheff and his son describe "praying" and at times "thanking god" yet struggling with the second step, "Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity". Sheff also explores "enabling" yet never quite labels it as such and the struggle of trusting and believing his son while also having no trust in his son the addict. Through Al-Anon Sheff finds support to challenge his own thinking, to explore his choices and his priorities and the strength to balance his love, his fear and his hope for his son.   This book is not a fairy tale, no guaranteed happy ending, but a vulnerable, well-research book about a family and the journey of a son addicted to meth. Comings and Goings Welcome to: Sarah L. Rachid R. Zazhary W. Issac R. Shay B. Alyssa S. Cameron C. Charlie C. Andrew W. Heather W   Best of luck to: Ron H. Tyler M. Gabe H. Lucas F. Whitfield E. Adam R.   Retirement Please join us in bidding farewell to Office Manager Shirley Rex. We convinced Shirley to come out of retirement to work with us and knew that our days were numbered. We are forever grateful for the time that we have had with her and wish her all the best. And, we are pleased to say that she will still come in every Tuesday to facilitate medication management. She will, however, be giving up her Office Manager position at the end of this month. We are currently interviewing prospective applicants.