Category: teenage stuff
-
sweet target
I’m aware oh how crazy it sounds when my daughter talks about having a boyfriend just as she steps into her teens. She is too young.There are two options as I see it: I either create the context where she can talk to me about her feelings, the stir of new emotions, or force her…
-
about the 4 impressions
Right before my period, I feel things differently. I usually go a few notches down in self-confidence. I second guess myself. I mean it’s more like doubt, even as I lean into it as an embrace of a humble sprit. Humility never hurt. It was familiar and comfortable and protective. This month I have explored…
-
poem about fear
I observe in a new contextYour biggest fear.I didn’t know it before. We’ve talked about anything and everythingWe named our fearsSince you were three. We confronted themAnd nothing held you backNothing burdened you. Not that fear didn’t existWe just had a system to walk through itWhatever it might be. But in your first love,Though he…
-
“oh-wow” the 4 stages of 2026 for J
The best season yet. I catch the drifts, the disconnection, and reconnect easily. We don’t take it personally, and we trust the deep love we share. Is it hard or easy to believe that I have disappointed & frustrated this daughter of mine plenty throughout the last decade? I loved her well and with clear…
-
tagging along
Sometimes I think my daughter can compartmentalize better than me. She probably can, as she has fewer boxes to sort. There is this sweet spot of nearly teen, where loyalty and attraction and simplicity meet. Of all the people who expressed an interest in her, she likes only one, in a very nonchalant, relaxed way.…
-
Be curious
When she comes to me wide eyed, worrying that something is wrong with her feelings, I smile and tell her to slow down & observe her emotions. It may be my saving grace, to have this insatiable hunger to understand, and the difficult-to-manage feelings become tame, as I look at them with wide eyes and…
-
End of school year
This school year was as we hoped it would be. Smooth coasting, even with Jackie’s afternoon classes, and a possibly hectic schedule. The individual time I had with each girl was awesome. And I had energy and attention. We set boundaries and we respected them. Jackie continued to play the clarinet at home, nearly daily.…
-
Family hike
It is how we enjoy nature at a slow pace and let our minds unwind. It is how we connect, shoulder to shoulder, and we build endurance, physical and mental. I love the girls resilience and positive attitude even when it’s ridiculously hard to continue to put one foot in front of another. Conrad longs…
-
Perception of self
An honest X-ray of the relationshipAwakened to what meets the eyeBeauty. Restraint. Lust.Not knowing quite what to do with this assault of imageryBeauty perceivedRushed into the brainMaking camp Small at first but taking over Teenage brain unguardedCurious and hungry Go back to simple thingsCars and superficial conversationsBasic knowledge of the otherDistance and rest She pushed…
-
Average
“Coasting the average life. Made comfortable by the parents.” We function motivated by our own experiences and often times we overcompensate. I usually lay down the facts in front of us. Without judgement. Without trying to manipulate emotionally. – This is how the world was when I was a teen. This is how I adapted…
-
Hospitable to teenage guests
How hard can it be? But also: how impactful? Go the extra mile. The extra 10 miles in Cluj traffic towards Floresti. I was not planning to be out for so long. I jumped in the car to go get their luggage so they can go to the mall, but there was a mixup of…
-
The purpose of breaks
The thrill of acceleration, the speed and the movement. That is the visible and enjoyable purpose of a car. But the breaks are a necessary & good as well. To be in working order. Responsive. The emotional connection is real. Sustained. I wonder if they’ll regret having found such a great first love. These two…