This sounds encouraging. Julia <http://www.theage.com.au/news/General/Brandnew-boys/2004/12/18/1103312779656.html>
The Age 19 December 2004 Brand-new boys By John Elder They arrived troubled and angry. After five weeks at Typo Station, 10 young men emerged, armed with bushcraft and blacksmithing skills, equipped to forge a new identity. By John Elder. Children tear at one's bowels. - V.S. Pritchett. In the foothills of the Alpine National Park, an hour east of Glenrowan, today is Celebration Day. Up at the station, 10 boys are cooking lunch and preparing to show off what they've learnt in the past five weeks: blacksmithing, pioneer bushcraft, anger management and the joys of rigorous routine. Posters on the wall of the old woolshed remind them how to keep their cool, how to deal with reality without feeling beaten by it. Meanwhile, their families and friends are down where the road meets the flatlands, at the Cheshunt hall - sitting in a big circle on white plastic chairs, surrounded by pink fibro walls dressed with Christmas tinsel, waiting to see how much of a celebration is truly in order. Celebration Day is also reunion day. "And, as you'll see," Andy Kay tells The Sunday Age, "that can be scary for both the young blokes and their families. At the least, we'll have provided some space to conflict. We've allowed both parties to stand back from a heated situation." Andy Kay is CEO of Typo Station, an early intervention program for troubled lads aged 14 to 17 - and named after the high-country cattle station (bequeathed to charity) where the program is based. The initial five-week stay at Typo Station features intensive emotional workshops, domestic chores of a rustic persuasion and a 100-kilometre trek through the alps that has the "young blokes" (or "YBs" as they're named in the literature) carrying everything on their backs, including the welfare of their fellows. "They grow to look out for one another," says Andy Kay. During the five weeks, there are two weekend "home visitations" where the boys try out their new communication skills on their families. Namely, saying how they feel without swearing or losing their tempers; employing I-messages (like "I feel sad") rather than you-messages (like "you suck"); and listening with interest to what everyone else has to say. The results are always mixed; in some cases a new peace is gingerly brokered, in others, talks break down to disappointment and confusion. So it has gone for the latest intake. And now it's Celebration Day, the boys are coming home for good and some of the parents are clearly nervous - others nervously hopeful. This becomes apparent in the hall as everybody in the big circle - about 70 people, including grandparents, teachers and family friends acting as support teams - take their turn saying how they feel. Matthew's father, Al: "I've seen a change in Matthew. I find he is more ready to listen and not argue. I hope it stays that way." Josh's father, Robert: "We were amazed to see the change in his physical condition. We're just hoping that he'll be more motivated and engaged now." Nik's mum, Rosemarie: "I'm a bit mixed. We were pleased with how Nik looked when he came home the last time but I feel there is still a way to go with his attitude. He needs to be a bit more tolerant." Another boy's mother: "I've got my power back. He's not running the house any more. I'm hoping I'm the mum again." Terry, James' father: "We've seen a big change already. We may be able to keep him at school for another year." These people are from all over - Kew, Echuca, Mount Beauty, Werribee. Andy Kay says: "Some of the young blokes come from affluent communities and have had a lot of good stuff thrown at them - and others come from disadvantaged settings. Regardless of where they are from, we see them as troubled and vulnerable with a variety of behavioural issues at home or at school. Some have been expelled, others are on their final notice, some have drug issues or had minor run-ins with the law, breaking and entering, vandalism, train surfing, drug issues." Everyone in the circle speaks as if making a wish. And then a charged attentiveness takes hold as team leader Kate Hand tells the families to expect good things but not miracles. She talks for a long time about there being a "hard transition" ahead, that it may not be immediately apparent that the boys' new emotional skills have taken root - but to take heart in the fact that "they are trying to change, they want to change", that they've worked hard on developing a sense of boundaries, and that Typo Station youth workers will continue to mentor and monitor their progress for the next two years. Finally, before the hall empties out and everyone drives up the hill, Kate Hand says: "And remember, for the young blokes, this is Celebration Day." Soon after, one of the fathers comes to my side to say he doesn't know why his son has ended up at Typo Station. (Although boys are nominated - usually by their school, social worker or a family member - they must demonstrate commitment before they're accepted into the program.) In another moment, a supportive grandmother walks up and says: "There's another word for boundaries: 'No.' Sometimes they've got to hear it said." Up at the station, the first young bloke we see is Cain, 17, manning the gate. His parents are running late and have missed the meeting at the hall. He tells me briefly about his "issues" - and he relaxes when he talks about the history and mission of the station, as if he's always been part of it. He doesn't want to leave. "No, I want to stay here," says Cain, who soon after politely excuses himself. They're all busy, the young blokes. As has become their habit, they were up early, chopping kindling, cleaning and otherwise tending chores before breakfast. At this moment, some are working at the blacksmith forges, careful and confident as they bring the red hot metal to the anvils, occasionally flinching with emotion when it doesn't come out right - but keeping it together. In another part of the workshop, a boy is bracing a log between his feet and working at it with an adze - a job that demands a great deal of patience. The workshop, like the surrounding bushland, is no place for a bad temper or a clueless loser. Although notions of identity, responsibility and community are fostered in the evening talk sessions around the campfire, it's the serious demands of station life that give these notions credence. Every day is a test. On the porch of the beautiful mud brick station home, the visitors are lining up to get their name tags from Nik, 16. Nik handles the greetings earnestly but there's a schedule to keep to, and he meets all questions with distracted understatement. Going home is "all right" with Nik, but, like Cain, he's found a groove that agrees with him. "I'm happier," he tells me later. "There was a lot of family conflict before. I needed a break from it and to learn new strategies. It took a bit of guts to use it at first with the other blokes instead of bitching at everyone and yelling." He says he is moved by the fact that some teachers from his school have come to support him. "That makes me want to improve my standing at school. I just wasn't motivated before. Now I have a plan," he says. After the big roast lunch, Nik's mother, Rosemarie, watches her son in the workshop, a quiet smile on her lips. She tells me about his problems at school. "If he wasn't interested in what the teacher was saying, he'd just start reading a book or go to the library instead of the class," she says. Minutes later, Rosemarie is hanging at the back of the crowd as Nik demonstrates the 25-kilogram packs that the boys carried on their nine-day trek. Various mums and dads try on the pack, stagger about, declare themselves impressed. Now there's a little glow in Rosemarie's face because everyone's very quiet as Nik tells the story about the group running out of water. During the nine days, there is a single food and water drop. And the new water had been tampered with. Some thought it had been on purpose, by way of another test. At that point, the trek could have been abandoned, but instead the group decided to split into two groups; one to make camp, the other to drop down the mountain in search of water. "I was really proud of them," says Nik. --- Picture: A young man tests his mettle in the blacksmithing workshop, guided by a sign urging I-messages (pictured below) as a means of controlling anger. <http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2004/12/18/camp_1912_ent-lead__200x290,0.jpg> Picture: The I-message, a pivotal anger management mechanism at Typo Station. <http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2004/12/18/imessage_1912_ent-lead__200x258,0.jpg> ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/pyIolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/boysed/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
