Hope's Boy 6

Andy continutes living in his foster home and although it is better than the facility, it is not that great. He doesn't have the attention that a child needs to thrive. He is socially excluded in the household and his situation at school isn't much better. On the rare occasion that somebody tries to make friends with him, his embarrasment over his situation causes him to push people away. There were people that gave up but, "For the few that persisted, I endured their advances but held to my restrictions. If classmates insisted on stopping by the house, I did my best to meet them on the sidewalk or at the front door"(Bridge 240). He doesn't want people to know that he is living in a foster home. He is afraid that having friends over would reveal that so he kept to himself. He avoided things like pep rallies and ate lunch by himself. When a classmate,David, asks him to go skiing, "There was something in the threat of closeness that was more than I could sustain. In the moment that it arrived, even the offer itself was too much"(Bridge 241). He is willing to do anything to prevent people from knowing his past. He pushes everybody away because he is scared that the truth might make a him an outcast. He turns down David's offer and says some very hurtful things to him in an effort to push him away. When he sees David in the hallway all he can do is remember the chance at friendship he offered him.
Andy's difficult childhood has made Andy different from other kids his age. He has dealt with a lot more hardship than many other people his age. When he runs for Student Body President he, "Knew not to rely on popularity or friends lobbying on my behalf. Instead, I chose the quality that childhood had taught me best:endurance"(Bridge 242). His difficult childhood forced him to take care of himself at a very young age. Peopel usually remember their childhood as fun times that they enjoyed but Andy remembers it as something that taught him how to endure life's hardships. In a letter he wrote to an admissions officer, "If I could show you MacLaren Hall or the house where I have grown up, you would see that angels and saviors are rare. Then, like me, you would know to stop looking for them, too"(247). His perspective of life is not very uplifting and this is obviously caused by his childhood. He has seen the world at a different angle and his experiences have affected him greatly. He only relies on himself to get what he wants and refuses help from others because he fears they will let him down.