THE TEENAGE YEARS

Kristi Sprague, Social Justice Coordinator

Middle School. Do you remember it? I was not a huge fan of shifting from my rural, cozy elementary school to the large middle school in town that pulled kids from all the elementary schools in Chippewa County. I was so lost.

My first memories are chaotic and of being jostled down a crowded hallway on the first day of classes, ending up in the ninthgrade wing. A kind principal walked me to my homeroom on the other side of the many-winged building.

If you are a teen or know a teen who would like a safe space to be with other teens, like I wanted way back in grade six, we have opportunities here at FUS for them. There is a Social Justice Program for teens that is in its infancy. This will begin to meet regularly, twice a month, in March. Dates coming soon. Also, there is a new group for parents of kids who identify as transgender and non-binary. The parents will meet the fourth Sunday of each month at 10:45 am, and the kids will be able to do activities together in a separate area. To learn more, you can contact Leslie Ross at leslier@fusmadison.org or Kristi Sprague at kristis@fusmadison.org .

After several months, my parents nearly pulled me out of this school because I could not sleep at night, fretting about the next day, the noisy classrooms, the girls who were unkind. By December, I finally acclimated. I found a group of girls in the band who were like me: sensitive, bookish, “nerdy,” wearing glasses and braces, and not into pop culture. We could be “real” with each other. Soon, we started to hang out after school, have sleepovers, pass notes between classes, study together, and find more girls like us. In being who we were, we made a space for ourselves to feel safe, accepted and heard. I did not realize it then, but I now see how much trust and vulnerability it asked of us all.