At almost exactly 6:00 PM, the doorbell rang, and my dog's barking startled me back into reality. I instantly got anxious, and let my mom answer the door while I stayed at the bar and waited. My mom answered the door, and I heard a man's voice introduce himself to her, before slowly following her up our unfinished hardwood stairs.
I was very intimidated by then. I pretty much forgot how to interact with people besides my family, but despite this, I approached the guy with a smile and we shook hands. He introduced himself as Eric, and I told him my name as well, before I sat right back down in my seat. I really didn't know what to think or how to interact, so I figured it was best if I just stayed quiet and listened, which is what I did best.
Eric talked about himself so I could be more familiar with him, and he discussed my schooling experience with my mom. I could tell by the way he talked and the things he said, that Eric really cared about his students, and was not like most of my past teachers. Also, the more I learned about Homebound, the better I felt about getting back into school. I wouldn't be thrown to the wolves, rather, I'd ease back into it, and be allowed to work at my own pace without much pressure. In fact, the only real pressure I was under was my own pressure to graduate high school on time. I knew it would take a lot of work on my part, but I was prepared to do it to graduate on time.
The discussion lasted for over an hour, and it was definitely a lot to take in. But, in short, I agreed to meet Eric at the local library everyday at 10 AM for school, which would get me active and out of the house. At 11 AM, I'd head back home, and work on homework. This was very exciting for me, since I finally didn't have to spend so much time on school, or even go to a building with lots of students in it. Instead, I'd go to a quiet library that was in a large, open park, just a little over a mile away from my house. I could get myself there and back, either by walking or by taking an Uber, and once I got home, I could basically do whatever I wanted.
Finally, just before he left, Eric invited me into his writer's group. For several years, he worked on writing with a small group of teens and young adults. I had the idea of writing a memoir for at least a couple years before, and had no idea where to start. But Eric's writer's group seemed like the perfect place to start writing my memoir. Not only would I get feedback on my writing, but once my book was written, I'd have help editing and sending my book to a publisher. So, of course, I immediately signed up, and agreed to meet with the writer's group every Monday evening.
