"Why shouldn't I try drugs and alcohol and see whatever movies I choose?" she questioned her parents.

     "You just don't want me to have any fun."

     During their most recent battle, Ashley's father refused to allow her to see the latest movie. Her friend Brittany's father had taken her, and even though Brittany hadn't liked the movie, Ashley felt left out.

     The next day at school the teacher announced that 16 hours of community service was required as the class project. Ashley looked at the list. She crossed off weeding the town square, feeding the homeless, and picking up freeway trash.

     "What community service did you choose?" she asked Brittany the next day.

     "I guess the homeless shelter."

     "What'll you do there?" Ashley asked.

    "Hang out while somebody preaches, then fill plates," Brittany said.

     "Sounds painless. I'll sign up too."

      They wore their oldest clothes that first night. There were 20 people in the shelter meeting hall. A clean-shaved man approached one of the guests.

     "Hey, Jake, thought you gave up the bottle."

     "How'd you know I didn't, Larry?" Jake asked.

      Larry took a deep breath and said, "You can do it, Jake."

     "Easy for you to say," Jake replied. "It isn't easy, but if I can, you can."

     The girls listened as Larry told Jake about the time a priest visited Larry's father, and the next day he died of lung cancer. Larry and his 11 brothers and sisters often came home to a street full of cars, locked doors, and laughter. They learned to amuse themselves while their mother tried to escape her pain.

     "Nobody told me not to drink or use drugs, but my mom kicked me out after I got hooked," Larry said. "Later I lost my job and ended up here."

      By now the hall had filled up, and the scent of dinner and unwashed people filled the room.

     "You from the high school?" Larry asked when he noticed the girls. They nodded.

     He introduced Ashley and Brittany to the kitchen staff, and an hour later they opened the line to begin serving.

     "Can I have more bread? The meat's hard to chew," a toothless woman asked Ashley.

     "Thanks. I haven't had much to eat for three days," a man told Brittany.

      Larry approached the girls after everyone had received their food and encouraged them to eat. He led them to a table.

     "Haven't seen you before," said Lonnie, one of the guests. She wore two coats and had a backpack.

     Larry introduced the girls.

     "You coming back?" Lonnie asked.

     "Yeah. Seven more weeks," Ashley said.

     The next day Ashley's mom asked, "Are you in outer space or just planning your next mall trip?"

     "Can't get that homeless shelter out of my mind. Mom, did you ever drink or take drugs?"

     "Why do you ask?" Mom hedged.

     "Well you're so against it. Didn't you want to try it?" Ashley asked.

     "I did once. Your grandma and I lived alone. I worked, saved, and bought an old car. One day I drove my friends downtown. Someone had brought a bottle. It wasn't my idea to drink and drive. I missed a turn, flipped the car, and never drank again," Mom said.

     The next week Brittany and Ashley stayed in the hall during the meeting while Larry spoke.

     "I stood at a crossroad and didn't know it. By the time I was 15 I'd been drinking and using pot for seven years. A friend of my mom's took me to a youth retreat. I almost walked away from drugs," he said, hanging his head.

     "Ten years later the judge offered me a choice: jail or rehab. After rehab I landed here, I'd quit using for awhile-and start again, but these guys never gave up on me," Larry said, "Whether you know it or not, today you face a crossroad."

      Larry finished, and Brittany and Ashley ran to their places in the serving line. When the girls sat down to eat, Lonnie joined them.

     "I'm gonna do it," she said. "What?" Brittany asked.

     "Quit. If I wasn't hung over, the dry cleaners might take me back. If I had a job, I could rent a room, maybe even get my kids back, or at least see them. I'm gonna cross over," Lonnie said.

     The next day at school Brittany caught Ashley staring into space.

     "Anybody home?" she asked Ashley.

     "I never thought about choices before."

     "Yeah, I'm glad Lonnie's quitting," Brittany said.

     "Me too, and I think I'm looking forward to going to the shelter now."

     The next week they watched Larry welcome guests.

     "If I can quit, you can too," he said.

     A couple of weeks later they were talking to Larry, and he said he'd just learned some sad news. "I wish they' never started. Most parents set limits, but kids don't like to listen and like me choose to learn the hard way.

     "Lonnie was  one of those people. The police just found her. DOA. Overdose," he said.

     "But she'd quit," Ashley said in shock.

     "She'd just learned that she had cirrhosis of the liver and snapped," Larry said quietly.

     The weeks went past, and guests at the shelter made promises. Sometimes they kept them.

     When Brittany and Ashley's eighth week came, it hit them that they wouldn't have to come again.

      "May I say a few words tonight?" Ashley asked Larry. "Maybe for 10 minutes after the meeting?"

      "You sure?" Larry questioned, and she nodded.

     "Whether you know it or not, you're at a crossroad," Larry said in closing, then motioned to Ashley to come up front.

     "This is the last night I serve here," she began. I probably wouldn't have come, except it was a school requirement. If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have met you, and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

     "I don't know what you're going through. I've never tried alcohol or drugs, but I was considering it about eight weeks ago," Ashley confessed. I wanted to try everything, and I thought my parents and teachers just didn't want me to have fun.

     "I faced a crossroad," she said, her voice cracking. "I know a lot of you want to quit. I've watched you struggle. You've helped me to decide to never try alcohol and drugs. Larry's right. You stand at a crossroad. You can choose to walk away or get help."

     Ashley glanced at Larry and the other rehab staff before looking back at the guests. She smiled through her tears. "Thanks for helping me cross over."

     A roar broke out in the hall, and guest after guest said, "I'm crossing over."

     The next week Mom watched Ashley as she concentrated on homework. She'd not lashed out at her parents for weeks.

     "Honey, there's a new movie out. I hear it's not too bad. Would you like to go?"

     "No thanks, Mom. But I'd like to go to the shelter and hang out. Somebody might be at a crossroad, and I want to be there."