madrobins (madrobins) wrote,
2013-02-02 06:43:00

Running-the-World Practice

Avocado has, more or less singlehandedly, founded a chapter of Junior Statesmen of America this fall. It has taken considerable energy and effort, plus reams of paperwork, both from JSA and the SF School District. And she is encountering the unamiable fact that sometimes you cannot rely on other people to do what they've said they'll do. This morning she gets on a bus (which she had arranged for and raised funds to pay for) to go to Sacramento with 15 of her schoolmates, to take part in a State Congress in which they will debate and vote on "bills" in the state house. Of course a few of the kids--many of them on scholarships A had helped to raise--are threatening not to go because something else, something shinier, has come up. And her faculty advisor, who thought she would have nothing to do but smile, nod, and maybe plonk down a signature or two, is feeling overwhelmed and taking it out on A.

Last night the kid had a meltdown. Tears and rage and yelling at me. After which, purged, she apologized--not just for this blow up, but for (as she realized) the fact that when she's under stress she takes things out on me. We had a good talk--I pointed out that, as unpleasant as this is for me, it means that I am the place she goes that is safest, and that's a good thing (I did not mention that I did not have a place like that when I was her age). I do remember the feeling of being passionate about something--the school paper, the senior play--and feeling like I was more or less dragging everyone behind me in my wake. (The truth is probably less melodramatic than I remember it.) Anyway, she felt better after we talked. And then one of the kids who's going called her up in a panic because he has no dress pants that fit (there is a dress code), and she talked him down.

So the kid is up at this hour and packing and getting dressed. I will throw on clothes and take her to the bus, and then, by God, I'm coming back and going back to bed. I can do that because I've already been through my spate of Teen Drama.
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