We would take turns doing the dishes and preparing meals. Some of the group homes I was in are locked facilities where the children only go out for specific activities. But group homes are also lawless. They are crowded. The majority of the children are on some sort of probation.
Violence is rampant.
Upstairs there are gang meetings, freehand tattoos, and games of dice. Liquor and hard drugs are common. While we were required to leave in the morning, we were not required to attend school, and as such, most kids did not finish high school. In many ways, the group homes defined who I am, much the way a person's family and upbringing would define them. The core of my value system was formed during the formative years of fourteen to eighteen.