Last night I sat in a circle of 10th grade girls who were every bit as exhilarating as 10th grade girls should be. They were warm and energetic, their love for each other and their time together could not be contained. They looked effortlessly beautiful in hoodies and sweats and every serious thought elicited an irrelevant comment and lots and lots of laughing. Why don't I laugh that much? To-do list: laugh more. About everything.
At one point a question was asked from the group leader and somehow completely unrelated, one of the girls commented: "My mom is getting braces. I don't know why, I mean, it's not like it matters at this point..." Then they all look at me (the guest, the old one, the mom) for a breath of horror and erupt into laughter.
Oh God Bless you sweet 10th grade girl. And God Bless your dear mother who lives so sacrificially that its easy to forget that she is more than an extension of her family and its needs. I have been that daughter. And I love that my mom shops at surf shops. I love yours for getting braces. She's daring to care for herself. And her actions are quietly and invisibly forming how you will one day think about yourself. Because tenth grade, like every season, is fleeting...
No comments:
Post a Comment