Heywire winner, Reece
I was back in Katherine, doing bad stuff. Breaking in. Drinking.
Mum helped me get back on track. She never gives up on me.
She got me a job at a cattle station.
I'd worked on different stations in the Northern Territory and in the Kimberley.
I'm from Elliott, it's 700 kilometres north of Alice Springs.
I felt homesick working on different stations, far from home. But I had to work to stay on track.
I knew I had to make a change and needed a break from station life.
I knew if I came to college, I'd have lots of support.
When I first moved into a dorm at college, I was scared that the big guys were going to tease me.
I'd seen movies where the new kid always got bullied.
I took a deep breath and introduced myself.
"Hey, my name is Reece. What's your name?"
"Hey brother, welcome to Yirara college." He said he was from Finke.
I said: "Where's that country?"
He said: "Just down the road."
I said: "Your country is close enough. My country is a long way away."
Then that young fella said to me: "Don't worry, every boy here is a long way away from their family."
I'm a long way from my family and my country because I want to be able to work on my health, get my footy going.
My Mum's depending on me. I've gotta be a man to look after her.
I'm proud of the work I've done to support myself, and her.
I'll be able to go back to working on cattle stations if I want, having graduated high school. Or I'll try another industry, to experience something different while I'm young.
I've got a big future ahead — looking after myself and my Mum.
Source: ABC