It was great to spend plenty of time with the teen. On a normal day, we see him for about an hour or less. He is usually holed up in his room. On the trip, we were literally together 24/7. He kept modifying the phrase "familiarity breeds contempt" to "proximity brings contempt"...and it did! He kinda hated almost all of us toward the end. He even started swearing openly without any filters.
I cannot forget these 2 nuggets:
- "weird a** street signs" is what he called the tiny signs for street names in one of the towns!
- he proclaimed rather loudly that another name for a certain advisory site for trips is "500 A**holes", and he said this right in front of his grandma! Luckily, his grandma didn't hear or pretended to not hear!
One quotable quote from the teen: When asked why he swears, ASid said, "I use swearing to emphasize a point and not as guns against people. I am not attacking anyone!"
I got to see my oldest in a new light for sure. However, the boy I nurtured for almost 16 years is still there beneath the volatile teenage exterior.
Here are moments I'd like to remember:
- he gave his grandma a hug or more every day, and he kept telling her, "anything for my beautiful grandma".
- he took on the role of navigator from me and let me read book 2 in the Game of Thrones series. He also bought me a bookmark to replace the shipment slip I was using!
- he entertained his younger brother in the car by conversing with him about Pokemon.
- he actually had a few civil exchanges with his dad.
- he also remembered to thank his uncle.
In spite of all his outbursts, he maintains his integrity. He is honest about his feelings even if that involves telling his family that they let him down. On the other hand, he is upset with himself if he realizes he let his family down. As long as he understands that none of us are perfect, I will totally ignore the occasional filter less outburst!
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