I often refer to the months I spent at Juniper Canyon as the happiest period of my life. Of course I have known great happiness in a myriad of forms throughout the different phases of my life, so it’s not fair to choose one and elevate it above all the others. It is impossible to truly compare the vast diversity of feeling one experiences in a lifetime; and yet, the hyperbole serves a vital purpose, for it is only really at Juniper Canyon that all of my emotional and psychological needs were fulfilled, and it was at Juniper Canyon that I learned to identify these essential needs and how to work towards their fulfillment. The profoundly loving, selfless, and genuine care of Dr. Maddy Liebing, Flora and Gil Hallows, nurse Julie Flood, and all the guides, healed me in ways I previously did not think possible. Never had I experienced such care and never had I encountered such caring people. Their existences alone could have restored my faith in humanity.
Since completing a year of treatment (including the aftercare program I attended proceeding Juniper Canyon), I worked for a year as a dance and art teacher for elementary school children, returned to college, graduated summa cum laude, phi beta kappa, and with highest honors, and began a Master’s degree at Harvard Divinity School as a Dean’s fellow, with a merit scholarship and stipend. As a divinity school student I study philosophy across all religions, and am training in therapeutic and ministerial service. I took a semester off during my time at Harvard to work as a behavioral therapist for children with developmental delays, to teach dance, and to volunteer at a soup kitchen on Skid Row in Los Angeles. I am currently back at Harvard, and I am looking forward to returning to Juniper Canyon as a guide in 2025, once I complete my Master’s degree.
I wrote my undergraduate honors thesis on the psychologists and philosophers William James and Carl Jung, and their influence upon the development of popular rehabilitative initiatives such as wilderness therapy and the twelve-step program of Alcoholics Anonymous. I continue to research such programs, specifically wilderness therapy and therapeutic boarding schools. There is much controversy of late as abuses within these industries are coming to light. I am relieved to see corrupt programs held accountable, and believe in the careful regulation of the industry, as these organizations wield such immense power over such vulnerable individuals. However, I am saddened to see the negative impact upon genuinely caring programs whose aim is simply to do as much good as possible, and who successfully meet this goal, working selflessly and tirelessly to provide loving care to those in need. The condemnation of the entire industry—the inability to see nuance and variety amongst the programs—is profoundly harmful, as for many, they function as an only hope and a saving grace. I stand by Juniper Canyon as a deeply beneficial endeavor in human healing; it changed my life and many of my friends’ lives infinitely for the better.
Gracie
