<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" version="2.0"><channel><atom:link rel="hub" href="http://tumblr.superfeedr.com/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"/><description>A Blog.. nothing more or less. Catharsis via a keyboard. Seeking solace for self and perhaps for others who share the same struggles, walking a similar journey.</description><title>For the Boys ~ From this Mom</title><generator>Tumblr (3.0; @fortheboysfromthismom)</generator><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/</link><item><title>Transparency</title><description>&lt;p&gt;So I&amp;#8217;m on this little mission to encourage more openness and transparency in Vale.  Believe it or not the kid is rather shy.  People are drawn to him, in fact it&amp;#8217;s kinda crazy sometimes, but he gets tongue tied and so he can struggle.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;However, he&amp;#8217;s insanely good looking.  I know, I know I&amp;#8217;m his mom, but seriously he is.  We have been told, from probably 20 independent sources, that he should model.. Yeah&amp;#8230; the anorexic boy should be thrust into that industry.  I think not.  He gets told he&amp;#8217;s &lt;strike&gt;cute&lt;/strike&gt; &lt;strike&gt;hot&lt;/strike&gt; &lt;strike&gt;handsom&lt;/strike&gt;e no.. sexy.  Can you believe that?  It thrills me that peers at school refer to him as Sexy Vale (well, his real name which makes an alliteration, but you understand), my 16 year old.  Yeah totes luvs.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src="http://media.tumblr.com/40582600b8437d32fb9ecce4d6fa5ccf/tumblr_inline_mo7iwuc1NN1qz4rgp.jpg"/&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;My husband came home from work and reported that someone wrote on the equipment at his job (where Vale works) that &amp;#8220;Vale is so sexxy&amp;#8221;.  I mean really?  And the icing on the cake (and then yeah, I&amp;#8217;ll get off this diatribe) his immediate superior told Vale that he should model for Calvin  Klein, calls him Calvin and says, &amp;#8220;you just have that appeal&amp;#8221;.  Sexual harassment anyone?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So back to the transparency.  So you have all these good looks, people are naturally drawn to you&amp;#8230; what are you going to do with it Vale?  Open up, share your story.. bits of it, sure, slowly&amp;#8230; one day at a time.  People will listen.  You can do more for your peers who are struggling, suffering and longing than perhaps their parents, teachers, doctors, shrinks, etc.  Moreover, chronicling how God has worked in you, helping you heal, can do more good than we can even imagine.  Makes me think of the televised debates of the Kennedy vs Nixon presidency.  Kennedy, although not nearly as articulate or bright swept those debates because he was far better looking.  There&amp;#8217;s so much opportunity to whisper change into people&amp;#8217;s lives.  Resounding hope.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I&amp;#8217;ll let you know if he bites.  I dare say, for the first time, he&amp;#8217;s really thinking about it.&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/52677578494</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/52677578494</guid><pubDate>Mon, 10 Jun 2013 22:41:23 -0400</pubDate><category>rape</category><category>men who were raped</category><category>sexual abouse</category><category>transparent</category></item><item><title>"You were broken, abandoned 
And crying all alone 
We were waiting and praying 
And longing to bring..."</title><description>“&lt;p&gt;You were broken, abandoned &lt;br/&gt;
And crying all alone &lt;br/&gt;
We were waiting and praying &lt;br/&gt;
And longing to bring you home &lt;br/&gt;
And then we saw your face &lt;br/&gt;
In a moment you were wrapped up in our hearts &lt;br/&gt;
We took a step of faith &lt;br/&gt;
And now here we are &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Will you let me hold you in my arms tonight &lt;br/&gt;
I have come so far to find you &lt;br/&gt;
So far to find you &lt;br/&gt;
Will you take my love and give up the fight &lt;br/&gt;
I have come so far to find you &lt;br/&gt;
So far to find you &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;From a world away, I journeyed &lt;br/&gt;
Just to hold your hand &lt;br/&gt;
You will never be alone again &lt;br/&gt;
I’ve come so far to find you &lt;br/&gt;
So far to find you &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;You were fighting and fearful &lt;br/&gt;
You were hiding your heart away &lt;br/&gt;
But I was trying so hard to show you &lt;br/&gt;
‘Cause there were no words that I could say &lt;br/&gt;
If you could see my heart &lt;br/&gt;
You would know that all I want to do &lt;br/&gt;
Is care for you &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Here in your eyes I see &lt;br/&gt;
Reflections of myself &lt;br/&gt;
How I’m the child that’s really running &lt;br/&gt;
But I can hear a voice (of God) that’s whispering my name &lt;br/&gt;
Saying come to me, don’t run from me &lt;br/&gt;
I’m all you need and I am calling &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;From Heaven’s throne &lt;br/&gt;
Down to a rugged cross I came &lt;br/&gt;
It was My love for you that brought Me all the way &lt;br/&gt;
So far to find you &lt;br/&gt;
So far to find you &lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;You were broken, abandoned &lt;br/&gt;
And crying on your own.&lt;/p&gt;”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;p&gt;Written by John Mark Hall, Stephen Curtis Chapman&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When I heard it I thought of Vale… of how after 8 years later he still has distrust.  I wonder, how long until he stops fighting and enjoys being safe.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/52079070339</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/52079070339</guid><pubDate>Mon, 03 Jun 2013 16:14:25 -0400</pubDate><category>foster care</category><category>rape</category><category>Childhood Sexual Abuse Awareness</category><category>adoption</category><category>casting crowns</category><category>stephen curtis chapman</category></item><item><title>May 31st</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Profound title is it not?  Per Vale&amp;#8217;s request WalkingThroughWithVale has been deleted.  I apologize if that causes any inconvenience, he just felt he didn&amp;#8217;t do enough on the blog and wanted it down for the time being.  Perhaps one day, he&amp;#8217;ll pick up a keyboard and start blogging again.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Yesterday is one of the first days that I&amp;#8217;ve been able to open my eyes to progress.  I am so thankful to our Heavenly Father for all his gifts, His goodness and His fingerprints all over Vale.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;span&gt;“Hope is the thing with feathers &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;span&gt;That perches in the soul &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;span&gt;And sings the tune without the words &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;span&gt;And never stops at all.” &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;span&gt;― &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7440.Emily_Dickinson"&gt;Emily Dickinson&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/51808589055</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/51808589055</guid><pubDate>Fri, 31 May 2013 11:46:31 -0400</pubDate><category>hope</category><category>Boys Who Are Abused</category><category>boys who are sexually abused</category><category>boys who cut</category><category>eating disorders</category><category>anorexia</category><category>rape</category></item><item><title>Fried Chicken Tizzy</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Never knew that fried chicken could change your outlook and inspire hope did you?  Vale, out of the blue, told the family that for some reason he was craving fried chicken.  If you know anything about anorexic behavior, you know that they don&amp;#8217;t crave *anything*.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Needless to say that the moment the family got home from church, Payne hopped on that computer to find the closest KFC.  A nearly mad scramble was made to obtain these nearly holy grail-esque poultry pieces.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Mom wasn&amp;#8217;t home.  She&amp;#8217;s in Rhode Island with Grey.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Vale reported&amp;#8230; he ate like a boy. ;)&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/50905444924</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/50905444924</guid><pubDate>Mon, 20 May 2013 09:30:18 -0400</pubDate><category>anorexia</category><category>men with anorexia</category><category>eating disorders in boys</category><category>eating disorders</category><category>sexual abouse</category><category>Childhood Sexual Abuse Awareness</category><category>rape</category></item><item><title>"The problem is that you don’t just choose recovery. You have to keep choosing recovery, over and..."</title><description>“The problem is that you don’t just choose recovery. You have to keep choosing recovery, over and over and over again. You have to make that choice 5-6 times each day. You have to make that choice even when you really don’t want to. It’s not a single choice, and it’s not easy.”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://edbites.com/2013/04/what-it-means-to-choose-recovery/"&gt;Carrie’s Blog Post&lt;/a&gt;  (via &lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://oddi-tea.tumblr.com/"&gt;oddi-tea&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;TRUTH!&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49956899287</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49956899287</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 16:59:26 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>littlespacecase:

Men’s IssuesSocietal expectations of masculinity
Societal expectations to provide...</title><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://littlespacecase.tumblr.com/post/48203015483/mens-issues"&gt;littlespacecase&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;div&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span&gt;Men’s Issues&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Societal expectations of masculinity&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Societal expectations to provide for women&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;No long term reversible male birth control&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Men who are raped are more likely to remain silent and be dismissed or outright laughed at &lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Unfair treatment in child custody battles&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Alimony &lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;No support for male victims of domestic abuse&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Not men’s issues&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;The friend zone&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Women not dating you&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;“F***ng femnazis”&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Honestly&amp;#8230; don&amp;#8217;t get the bottom portion of this post, but I do appreciate the top.  So true.&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946894309</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946894309</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 14:33:36 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>gracebrownphoto:

ten photos from my series project unbreakable...</title><description>&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/90483217419b8773837fc9ae5affda6d/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o1_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/7c9ae8a30df86c73ff20238ecf029828/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o3_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/ed4fdf9b9db58f9ee85d9a7f45735d74/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o4_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/c956c40aae5a5b7645cbe9a6f57d8132/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o6_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/cca6f5f318fa941d8b1c77310f1e431b/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o5_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/68a2d8fa3e7250f4cf31086ce693af49/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o7_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/9aa07bc6c74a9e0e220aba1442fc84cb/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o10_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/54520437b1822033991f8f59f09e633b/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o8_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/a8ae8f83c222afdec597e00ac0592dd4/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o9_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/bd73786daff872add2f2d8d1225771a6/tumblr_mmhl1rAqDI1s6jvx4o2_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://gracebrownphoto.tumblr.com/post/49937945199/ten-photos-from-my-series-project-unbreakable-that"&gt;gracebrownphoto&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;ten photos from my series &lt;a href="http://projectunbreakable.tumblr.com"&gt;project unbreakable&lt;/a&gt; that remind me every day why i do this work and why i will never stop:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;because it is our duty as humans to lessen the suffering of others, and if we can take a moment to bear witness to these words, we are able to carry the weight of them just a little bit.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;—&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;project unbreakable is a series created in october 2011 featuring photos of sexual assault survivors holding quotes from their attacker, quotes from their friends/family regarding the abuse, or statements from themselves regarding the abuse.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946746145</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946746145</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 14:30:59 -0400</pubDate><category>rape</category><category>Male sexual assault</category><category>project unbreakable</category></item><item><title>Hi, I found this a few blog a few minutes ago and I just wanted to say that I think your amazing for what your doing.  I wish that my mother would help me as much as you do with your son.  Anyway I figured you would like to hear a thank you, and honestly you deserve one. :)</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Thank you so much for your kind words.  I usually shy away form the word “deserve” because anything that I do is because God is so good to me, and that goes through me to others… at least most of the time.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I don’t know your mom, but often times I find moms just don’t know what to do.  But if your mom isn’t there for you, find support somewhere because our God created you for a special and unique purpose.  Don’t you want to find out what that is? &lt;3&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946662692</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946662692</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 14:29:34 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>Everything is really confusing and overwhelming, and I'd like to burn myself some more, but I wont.</title><description>&lt;p&gt;I’m glad you won’t… hurting yourself won’t make anything less confusing or overwhelming.  It may help it disappear in the immediate, but it is still there on the horizon.  Reach out, there is support to be found, often in the least likely of places. &lt;3&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946486002</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49946486002</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 14:26:25 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>brainywords:

mainlydownton:

girlfromlaer:

brainywords:

Brainy...</title><description>&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/1e91eae002f60333075253d3025a5265/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o1_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/37aecb8c20a494b4260aae004c622020/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o2_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/4c31619f2c517374f95480aa757e799f/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o3_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/70110776986d72f524b0512b324e989d/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o4_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/2c08627313f0a88dc3d5ed80da997fe6/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o5_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/2ed95146c61330474da5c6b6cfd4bbf3/tumblr_mmfk3qDF441snpen2o6_400.png"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://brainywords.tumblr.com/post/49858138843/mainlydownton-girlfromlaer-brainywords"&gt;brainywords&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://mainlydownton.tumblr.com/post/49857916933/girlfromlaer-brainywords-brainys-facebook"&gt;mainlydownton&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://girlfromlaer.tumblr.com/post/49857188776/brainywords-brainys-facebook-conversation-with"&gt;girlfromlaer&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://brainywords.tumblr.com/post/49853185255/brainys-facebook-conversation-with-her-mother-a"&gt;brainywords&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Brainy’s facebook conversation with her mother: a photo essay.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;*DYING*&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;YOUR MOM SHIPS TESSILY???? HA&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;only because she knows it gets on my nerves. she spent the rest of the conversation telling me how she was writing Morning/Emily fic. xP&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;NICE!!!  Making fun of your mother on TUMBLR!!!  I’m so fanficing that ship!&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49871140881</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/49871140881</guid><pubDate>Tue, 07 May 2013 15:23:02 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>"Yesterday, (Saturday), wasn’t a bad day. I woke up to the “Bug song” on the alarm on my phone. I..."</title><description>“Yesterday, (Saturday), wasn’t a bad day. I woke up to the “Bug song” on the alarm on my phone. I forgot to turn it off the night before, maybe forgetting that the following day was saturday. We went out to Ollies, to get thank-you cards, and chapstick. (Winter in the Northeast really kills your lips) Then we went to Zumos (A coffee shop in the green ridge section of Scranton). I ordered cheese cake, with a cinnamon steamer. When we came home, I asked mom if I could go up to the park (Nay Aug) to take some more pictures for my Fall Shooting Assignment in my photography class in school. I did get some decent pictures, but mother nature decided to give the wyoming valley a crappy year for fall foliage. The park has beautiful trees,a nifty (maybe twenty feet high?) tree house, an awesome gorge, inspiring trails, and I don’t know how else to describe it, it’s beautiful. The only problem with the park is that it has a deserted zoo. A few years ago it had a cougar, but kids loved to bang on the (was it a cage, or glass?) and it annoyed the crap out of the poor thing. It kept pacing back and forth, back and forth, staring at the kids, like it wanted to claw them all up. To take a break about this thing, I’m sorry I have to write about this. My mom is pretty annoyed about the whole “Cougar” thing, where it is considered more acceptable for an older woman to date or have sex with a younger man, or boy, than it is for an older man to have sex with a younger women, or girl. I’m watching this episode of Numb3rs, and it’s about how this older 30 year old woman is using this 17 year old boy. There going around, killing people, stealing money, cars, etc. I’m not quite sure what the end game is, but it’s still upsetting. Why is it more acceptable for an older woman to have sex with boys, but not men to have sex with girls? I’m not saying I want men to have sex with girls, but it’s still upsetting. Seeing who society twists roles, and everything. My mom typed up on the internet yesterday something like “women sexually using boys” or whatever, and it came up with the top ten cougar movies. That’s celebrating statuotory rape. But when she looked up “men sexually using girls” (again, something like that) all it came up with was porn! People say, “oh that’s disgusting for men to have sex with girls!” but….it’s…ok for women to do that with boys? Sorry, THAT doesn’t make any sense. And people say and think that boys have dirtier minds than girls, (dirtier? Why?) I asked my mom about that and she because boys start thinking about sex and having it, and more, than girls do. And that’s true, but that doesn’t mean that boys are dirty. Sorry, I was kind of jumping around there. So, we were just fooling around on the rocks in Nay Aug park, pretending to fight like soldiers, like most boys do. And, there’s this cool little ridge near the path above the gorge, that has two eye holes, and they’re big enough, you can crawl in them. Anyways, they tried to charge me, but I took this really long branch and pretended to set it on fire, and threw it at them. So, one of my brothers blocked it and it bloodied up my finger. Like, pretty bad. Dark, royal, red blood covering my finger, and pouring onto the rock. I think it’s healing all right, but it still looks pretty red, and maybe a little swollen, I’m not sure. I’m going to stop talking so I can go back with my brothers, maybe even to see my blood is still there.&lt;br/&gt;
Also, in my last post I said that it’s een two weeks since I last cut, that was an error. What I meant to say was: I threw up a few weeks ago.&lt;br/&gt;
Also, I just wanted to add that, I believe Paterno should’ve been fired (like he has), but at the end of the season. Why not let him just finish the season. Yes, he does deserve to e fired, obviously, because he didn’t follow through like he should’ve, but I still believe that he should’ve been allowed to finish the couple of games that he hasleft. Love, Vale”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/12747147135/blood-stains-on-a-rock"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: Blood Stains on a Rock&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48198652552</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48198652552</guid><pubDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2013 10:00:46 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>Project Semicolon: Semicolons represent a sentence the author...</title><description>&lt;img src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/ac690cbabfa3913020b34b4d66dffdc4/tumblr_mld2h65LMr1qhk28do1_500.jpg"/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;&lt;p&gt;Project Semicolon: &lt;span&gt;Semicolons represent a sentence the author chose not to end. You’re the author, the sentence is your life.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48134326488</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48134326488</guid><pubDate>Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:39:06 -0400</pubDate><category>semicolon projectsemicolon</category></item><item><title>"My posts are few and far between, evidently! Maybe I should stop apologizing, maybe im jinxing..."</title><description>“My posts are few and far between, evidently! Maybe I should stop apologizing, maybe im jinxing myself.&lt;br/&gt;
Whatever.&lt;br/&gt;
I look at my old posts and feel like a different person. I mean, intellectually, I know, “that’s me”. But, I feel like I’ve come so far. And it’s hard to believe.&lt;br/&gt;
I’m having a little difficulty blogging right now. So much has happened recently. Maybe some basic updates:&lt;br/&gt;
This may be a little frightening to some people, as I have an eating disorder, but I joined track&amp;field. Since I’ve been doing rather well with my eating, I have sort of gained more endurance, and strength. (I did 300 calf-raises with ten lb’s in each hand. And, NO, I’m not bragging about it :p )&lt;br/&gt;
I have private art lessons. Which is exciting, as i vastly enjoy art.&lt;br/&gt;
I rejoined Choral Society. Not as exciting, but still, important.&lt;br/&gt;
I joined Civil Air Patrol. It’s an Air Force Auxiliary. Honestly, the only reason I’m going is because it looks good on college and job applications. The weekly meetings are boring, but the events they hold are (im hoping) exciting, like encampment. Encampment sounds excruciatingly thrilling.&lt;br/&gt;
I have promised before hand that I would try and post more, but this time I mean it! If I don’t post within (at least) the next two weeks, you have permission to ask my mom to slap me. If this weren’t the internet, I would’ve given you permission to slap me. This is the internet. Ohhh well … :D&lt;br/&gt;
I’ll give more daily things like how track went, or how the “hottest girl in the tenth grade” wants my number. :P Again, so much has happened, and I have to think a bit in order to find out what to post. Our house looks gorgeous all redone and all. The floor is amazing. If I showed a picture of the floor before the flood and after, you would probably spit your coffee on your screen.&lt;br/&gt;
The walls are painted attractive colors, and we have refreshingly new furniture. However, the rest of town looks like a dump. I swear every block there is a house that has been torn down, or needs to be. Every third house is for sale. Every other house abandoned.&lt;br/&gt;
Okay, those statistics may not add up, but my point is proven. If a person had not been here previously, the whole town would look like white trash.&lt;br/&gt;
Oh, I guess this is important. A couple weeks ago was my second birthday. aka, the day I showed my arms (last year) to my mom, the day after valentines. We celebrated by eating Mexican. Just kidding. We celebrated by making those Pandora Project “I am —-” posters. And I also submitted something to speak for RAINN. We did have Mexican though. So, that was a successful, progressive day. Again, I will try and post as much as possible Love Vale”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/18534166995/my-apologies"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: My Apologies&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48119984720</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48119984720</guid><pubDate>Tue, 16 Apr 2013 10:00:50 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>"I did a rather difficult thing today. I did an interview. I was extremely nervous about it..."</title><description>“I did a rather difficult thing today. I did an interview. I was extremely nervous about it before-hand. I was worried I wouldn’t know how to answer questions, if they were going to be uncomfortable, or if I didn’t straight out know how to answer them. Thankfully, the interviewer and camera guy calmed me down by acting very friendly, and calm. They told me If I felt uncomfortable answering any questions I could just signal that I didn’t want to. God blessed my tongue, because I answered all of them fine, I think!&lt;br/&gt;
Now, the aftermath has been a little strange. It reminds me of my speech last year, I felt drained. Physically tired, but mostly emotionally tired. I’m still coming off my high, and I think it’s going to take a while. I actually went outside the window, and sat down. Looked at the mountains, or big hills.. whatever they are, and the trees, and the sun dying down. Just to try and get in control, or find some kind of peace or calming feeling.&lt;br/&gt;
(By the way, mom, don’t kill me when you read this) Guys, I might not technically be allowed to go out on the roof XD&lt;br/&gt;
Anyways, my hips are doing okay. I fractured them before during track, just in case nobody knows. The process is apparently taking longer than it would with most people because of my eating. Since my body isn’t getting enough nutrients, it is pulling calcium and energy from other bones to heal the hip. “So, if you don’t eat, and your hips don’t get enough nutrients (calcium, vitamin c, protein) you won’t heal, and then you won’t be able to compete in track anymore””&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/25060207118/interview"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: Interview&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48040212248</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/48040212248</guid><pubDate>Mon, 15 Apr 2013 10:00:52 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>I am not a boy. I am a girl. I'm seventeen, and I have three of Vale's diagnosis's. I am also a cutter, and suffer from Dermatillomania. I don't want to overstep any boundaries. I don't want to say I understand anything your son is going through. But my oldest older brother is Paranoid Schizophrenic. My sister has PTSD and can't eat sometimes. And I'm destroying my mother ever day, I know, when she sees my arms. So I'm reading your words, to understand you as a woman, as a mother, like mine.</title><description>&lt;p&gt;I hope that you find my blog helpful?  As a parent is is extremely painful to watch your child suffer so much.  On the other hand, being there for him now gives me hope that he’ll have a full life later.  It’s a small price to pay.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;But I would like a nap. ;)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Keep in touch, okay?&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47857147977</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47857147977</guid><pubDate>Sat, 13 Apr 2013 07:59:52 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>I was 13 when I started cutting. No one had a clue till I was 15, and my dad found me passed out with my arm over the toilet. And chose to ignore it. I'm almost 21 now, and was cut free for almost 3 yrs until a week and 1 day ago. I have no idea who you are, or your family. But your son is extremely lucky to have you. You have a beautiful soul, and by the way you speak about vale and your love for him, he is a spectacular boy. I hope things get easier. And they eventually will. Just stay strong</title><description>&lt;p&gt;Thank you so much for your letter.  It’s a little hard for me to comprehend seeing your child in that state and deciding to walk away.  I appreciate your kind words but please know it’s I who am the lucky one.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Mom&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47857045014</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47857045014</guid><pubDate>Sat, 13 Apr 2013 07:57:06 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>"Last week I had another interview with a local newspaper. It was much longer than the very first..."</title><description>“Last week I had another interview with a local newspaper. It was much longer than the very first interview. The first interview was maybe about five minutes long, this interview was more along the lines of fifty minutes long. It was much more personal, and I was asked a lot about my own life. It was a little difficult at times, but I made it out alive. ( or did i? :O) This week I am a counselor at Marley’s Mission camp. It hasn’t been all that rough, but actually enjoyable. It can be difficult at times trying to keep some kids under control, especially since you are not allowed to touch any of them. Not that I would strangle any of them into submission, but you get me.&lt;br/&gt;
I met another guy there who’s nice, he helps me keep all the ducks counted. Some kids are harder than others (which is to be expected) For example, there is a younger guy in his early teens who is in our group who is slower mentally. He is constantly ‘tired’, but I’ve been told ‘tired’ actually means he has a case of L-A-Z-Y. So, during some activities, actually… most of them I have to constantly check him to make sure he’s involved. Either that or that he hasn’t wandered off somewhere on the farm which scares the crap out of me. I don’t know him, but I feel responsible for him. Another kid the first couple days didn’t want to be there. I was concerned he was even going to come back. But, today he came back, and quite shockingly wanted to help with the boys who were younger than him.&lt;br/&gt;
Besides that, some flirting between kids, and minor misbehaving. And on another note I got a job for the summer (and, hopefully, a few years into the school year) I will be working a farm stand.. selling vegetables on courthouse square. The guy I’m working for is building a restaurant, and maybe this will lead me into being a waiter. (that is a rather big maybe)&lt;br/&gt;
Have a good week, love you!”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/27507170868/another"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: Another&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47780550358</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47780550358</guid><pubDate>Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:00:46 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>"It’s me again. Its been what…three four months since I last posted. That was when I was at PPI. But,..."</title><description>“It’s me again. Its been what…three four months since I last posted. That was when I was at PPI. But, Im way past that. Im eating fine, and I haven’t cut in, Im not going to say a long time, but maybe a couple weeks. Someone might think, well that’s not very long at all to go, but I had gone months before that relapse. So shut up. Everyone probably knows that my family got displaced by the flood. Which is crazy… One day I was just walking around aimlessly (like i usually do) and firefighters were walking around my small town banging on people’s doors telling them theres a recommended evactuation. My mom called my dad and I think thats when he started coming home, either that or when BANG BANG BANG “its a mandatory evacuation”&lt;br/&gt;
This is kind of off topic, but if you think of the name firefighter it sounds so noble..and they’re jobs are nobel but I am feeling pretty weird right now. I have a cold, and I feel like my mind is floating above my head.&lt;br/&gt;
I remember the day when we came back to our small nothing-happens-here town, and feeling crazy. This kind of stuff doesn’t happen to me. This only happens to people you don’t know, where it doen’t hit you. This only happens to people that you feel sorry for for five seconds, maybe even pray for, and then move on with the rest of your life.&lt;br/&gt;
This flood has made me appreciate those people more. Even think about them more, and pray for them. There’s nothing else much I can do, really. The only money I have I’m trying to save up for a car, and for college (maybe i wont need money for college because im considering the ROTC) and some money for travelling in those years. Anyways, we came back, and the military were on the streets, controlling traffic, and possibly even stopping low-lives from stealing our garbage.&lt;br/&gt;
You might think “why would you call them low lives? maybe they’re just poor” No, i don’t care even if they were poor, if they were that desperate, they still need to ask. We’re not mean people, well help you, just ask. That doesn’t even count the fact that ITS ILLEFGAL.&lt;br/&gt;
Scroungers going around looking for valueable objects here and there in people’s waste piles. Have you any decency? this is a crises, people’s lives are changed completely, our lives are upside-down..&lt;br/&gt;
….now that im done ranting. It’s so surreal, as my mom says. As I said before, you never think that that kind of stuff will ever happen to you. Ever. Maybe if you’re a caring person, you’ll give money, but besides that, honestly, you can’t really do anything.&lt;br/&gt;
Imagine everything in your basement.&lt;br/&gt;
Imagine everything on your first floor.&lt;br/&gt;
Now imagine not having any of it. One day you come back to your house, and it’s all gone. That’s not even thinking about the fact that you have to clean all the crap up. That you have to rebuild your life, and live like a nomad. That first day we came back, us kids didn’t even see the basement. Maybe because it was too much in shambles, my mom didnt want us seeing it. Or maybe because it smelled so horrible I could puke. It still smelled like that weeks after. Besides the huge mess everywhere, filthy lackawanna river (old-coal poisoned water) all over your floor, t-v smashed, furniture flipped, all your expensive electronics waterboarded. It’s amazing what water can do. Something you see everyday. Yeah, that stuff that comes out of the showerhead is water. That liquid that comes out of your sink faucet, is water. Whenever you go to the pool, run around in the summer rain, go to the ocean, even drink. That’s all water. So, besides the huge massive mess, there are just random things everywhere. Some kids toys from down the street on our front porch. A box filled with miscellaneous supplies all the way down the road, two three blocks. What’s up with that?&lt;br/&gt;
Three milk jubs lined up in an artistic fashion, all filled at the same exact height. That’s so weird.&lt;br/&gt;
Some guys lawn table just sitting in the back alley, as if someone set it up to have lunch there……???&lt;br/&gt;
TV remotes standing up on their bottoms on the side table in the living room. YOU CAN FLIP FURNITURE AND RUIN MY PRECIOUS HOME, BUT YOU CAN’T FLIP OVER A FREAKING REMOTE?&lt;br/&gt;
ok..im done.&lt;br/&gt;
We got this half-a-double cleaned up nice so we can live in it. My mom’s friend let us stay in here. I don’t know if the exchange deal was that we can stay here if we clean it up? Whatever..&lt;br/&gt;
So, out of the house.&lt;br/&gt;
1. into my mom’s sister in laws house for a couple days&lt;br/&gt;
2. into the church..which was weird&lt;br/&gt;
3. into a hotel up on montage mountain&lt;br/&gt;
4. into this half-a-double in scranton. Living in Scranton i guess softened the blow to us moving again, because it’s one of my favorite cities. Lengthy, rich history, nice decent sized downtown, beautiful architecture, gorgeous parks, nice coffee shops. Plus, it’s my birthplace, and I lived there for some few years when I was still with my birth “parents”.&lt;br/&gt;
I know my mom is thinking about me in the matter of us moving around so much. It does bother me because it might bring back memories of my old life when I was still in foster care. Moving around from house to house, no one wanting you. But we’re all cool here; Im all right.&lt;br/&gt;
Im talking a lot cause i haven’t posted in a while; which I apologize for, because I know some people enjoy reading. I will try to keep posted.&lt;br/&gt;
Any questions, just ask. I’m pretty available, when I’m not doing school, or working on rebuilding on my home.&lt;br/&gt;
School is going well, I like my art and music class alot. (of course) I could post some of my work i’ve done so far on here. But I also have a school blog, maybe I can just give the website, I don’t know how that would work out.&lt;br/&gt;
I’m pretty upset about what went on in PennState with that perv sandosky, or whatever, I don’t care about spelling his name right, because if he doesn’t care if he effs up kids i dont care if I dont say his name right.&lt;br/&gt;
Before all this happened, psu was one of my choices i wanted to go to for college, Im not so sure anymore. I’m still going for architecture no matter what school I’m going to.&lt;br/&gt;
I know, just because a handful of creeps do wrong, doesn’t mean their education system is any worse. Still, it makes my want to go to pennstate weaken.&lt;br/&gt;
I feel bad #1 mostly for the boys who were raped, obviously. Secondly, for the innocent people who are having their reputations tainted because of the perv. (It’s amazing how one persons wrongdoings can spread out to hurt so many other people) #2, I feel bad for the football players. On the radio the other day a guy was saying how the football players shouldn’t play in the last games. I hope you realize that doesn’t make any sense. You are going to take away the honor of these other young men, because they’re an easy target, even though they did nothing wrong? These guys who have worked and dreamed of being on that team, are going to have hallowed out honor in these games. How can they say with complete assurance and pride “We are PennState”? That’s not fair at all. Now, about Jo Paterno. Should he quit? I don’t know, I can’t judge that. What I find completely offbalance though is that this man, Paterno, who has had a great, honorable, respected career for over six decades is being pounced on for this one time. Six decades, seriously? Yes, I know, these are the lives of young boys, and they count, but I still find that pretty high up on the crazy scale.&lt;br/&gt;
And this other guy, WHO SAW A BOY BEING RAPED, ran away like a girl, and took over a day to report it. So, Paterno, who has been a good guy for his whole career is being fired, when he did the lesser of two evils, but this guy who saw the whole freaking thing still has his job….&lt;br/&gt;
Maybe they fired Paterno because he’s an easy target, I don’t know. Im all up in arm about the whole thing. Of course im angriest with this perv, sandusky, or whatever his “name” is. He doesn’t deserve a name.&lt;br/&gt;
Those kind of guys, pedophiles, rapists, all of them, I just want to take a dull knife and castrate them all.&lt;br/&gt;
But, to express my anger in a good way my mom and I are talking about trying to pass a law. The whole idea isn’t completely fleshed out, but the basic idea is that these people should get time because they were state-funded. My mom could probably explain it better. Again, any questions, comments, concerns, whatever..Im here.”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/12625349306/me-again"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: Me Again&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47706255978</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47706255978</guid><pubDate>Thu, 11 Apr 2013 12:00:58 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>"Hey, I’ve been reading your tumblr for a while and I have come to the conclusion that you are a..."</title><description>“Hey, I’ve been reading your tumblr for a while and I have come to the conclusion that you are a beautiful, inspirational person. I have a cutting problem as well, but when I read your blog I’m inspired to stay strong and keep soldiering on. You’re a great person and I admire you so much. :)”&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt; - &lt;em&gt;&lt;a class="tumblr_blog" href="http://walkingthroughwithvale.tumblr.com/post/41283939479/youre-inspirational"&gt;Walking Through With Vale: You’re inspirational&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/em&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47700463886</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47700463886</guid><pubDate>Thu, 11 Apr 2013 10:00:43 -0400</pubDate></item><item><title>please help me....</title><description>&lt;p&gt;how can I help you….&lt;/p&gt;</description><link>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47663224505</link><guid>http://fortheboysfromthismom.tumblr.com/post/47663224505</guid><pubDate>Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:58:03 -0400</pubDate></item></channel></rss>
