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hunger for knowledge has always been within our students—they were just never given the opportunity to digest what was being taught in the classroom. Yet even when traditional schooling proves to be a viable option , life's ironies can still deter the young student from finishing school. We don't understand the importance of education, and we allow almost anything and everything else to take precedence over school. Many of us become parents at a very young age and drop out of school to support our families. Or maybe we're rebels without a clue and see education as a waste oftime. Preferably, as young parents, we don't get caught up in the welfare system because it's very hard to free oneself from that trap: survival is so paramount that education becomes secondary. LPHCS understands that life's circumstances can get in the way ofeven best-laid plans, and while we don't dismiss the past, we concentrate on the here and now. Each day at LPHCS is a fresh start, and regardless ofwhether the student is nineteen or forty-nine, we are all striving for the same goal: education has now become our primary concern. Ultimately, LPHCS has a unique, comfortable learning environment that keeps the students coming back for more. We may do things a little differently, but we get things done; we see results because we never give up on any student. Traditional schooling can cite its successes, and so can LPHCS; there's plenty ofroom for both. But for those of us at LPHCS, the unconventional way has become the norm, and it works just fine for us. Status Symbol Zella packs that bright red pocketbook she got over at the flea market the one she paid fifty cents for and found a dollar under the lining inside Says it's a lucky purse Carries it with her all the time whether she's going to see Doc Roberts or traveling to town to get commodities or bowing down with the others at the mourners' bench. She holds on to that red pocketbook like a plutocrat to private stock. —Sandra B. Keaton 35 ...