The kids are (better than) alright

Posted in teenagers
by Lorain County Moms

By Pamela W., NYC Moms Blog

I had the pleasure (and I do mean pleasure) of attending a varsity basketball game at my kids’ school recently. I haven’t attended a high school sporting event since I was in high school myself so many years ago. I loved high school and thrived in the social milieu of having my clique of friends, boyfriend and generally happy social life.

That being said, I do remember kids in high school being pretty mean to one another at times, making outsiders feel uncomfortable and certainly do not recall EVER inviting my parents to join me for a game. As a matter of fact, I would not have been caught dead having my parents anywhere near me in public during my high school years and distinctly remember walking as far away from them as humanly possible if we ever had to go to the mall together. My recollection of anyone’s parents from high school is fuzzy. They were there in the background of our lives, like the parents in The Peanuts occasionally providing some commentary like “Drive carefully,” but never really appearing.

When I told me daughter I was going to go to the game she did try to dissuade me — telling me it was going to be so crowded that it would be hard to get a seat. I said I would get there early, and not to worry about it. After a half-hearted eye roll she said okay. So imagine my surprise when my daughter texted me right before game time and asked me to save seats for she and her friends. The girls sat right next to me in the bleachers and chatted with me (and one of my friends) all throughout the basketball game. They were not embarrassed to be seen with me, and to the contrary, filled me in on who was who on the team, what colleges some of the kids were going to and provided a running commentary on the game.

There turned out to be many adults at the game. We all sat mixed in the bleachers with the students. This was NOT high school as I remembered it. The kids were polite — not only to each other but to the adults too; they were engaging, fun, spirited and welcoming. To wit: my jacket had fallen to the floor and a student picked it up, brushed it off, and handed it to me; the elevator was held for me by three high school boys; and adults and kids freely bantered and high-fived throughout the game.

I heard Anna Quindlan speak a few months ago at a Parents in Action luncheon about this generation of kids. Ms. Quindlan rightly claimed that they were exceptional in their savvy, kindness and community-minded spirit and that “perhaps the greatest generation is yet to be.” After my experience, I would agree and would add that if I had to return to high school today, I would hope to be as polite and poised as any of these students — and that I might even save a seat for my mom at the next game.

This is an original post by Pamela W. to www.nycmomsblog.com. Pamela is the co-author of the best-selling parents resource guide “City Baby,” whose fourth edition is due out September 2010. She is also a career coach and a co-founder of MYOBmoms.com — a business dedicated to helping moms return to the workplace.