Jr High Blues

* Let me preface this blog post with a request. If any of you see, talk to, or otherwise interact with my son, please do not mention this blog posting. I'm about to enter a very sensitive area and will be discussing personal issues that my son would rather I not chat about so openly with the entire world. Basically, I believe he would be mortified and never speak to me again. So please, do not repeat what you are about to read. Thank you. *

Junior High age kids can be cruel. And they can be mean. It's such a difficult time in a young persons life. What, with bodily changes and hormones running amok. I remember the cliques, the teasing, the emotions. I had enemies, I had best friends, I had embarrassing moments, I had good times and some not so good times. I'll never forget during the summer after 8th grade when my boyfriend (John Holmes... yeah, that was his real name. Seriously. That was his name.) Anyway, John dumped me right before we went into High School because there would be "better" girls there. At least that's what his older brother told him.

So yeah, it was hard living through the pre-teen/early-teen years. But I think I'm discovering that it's equally difficult, if not a wee bit more difficult parenting a child through this time in his life. Being on this side of things, I know what it was like. I've been there. I lived through it. The ol' "If I knew then what I know now" thing really means something. Unfortunately, I can talk to him until I'm blue in the face about how it'll be over before you know it, how kids are just mean, how he should just ignore it, how he's a smart kid and how he'll do well in life. I have lots of advice. But normally it falls of deaf ears.

Tonight was a little different though. My son told me that today at school his best friend announced that the only reason he hung out with him was because he helped him with his homework. Apparently the best friend didn't like him at all. And he announced all of this at the lunch table. And the best friend's twin brother agreed. So my poor son, who has had some difficulty making good friends, not only lost his best friend, but was embarrassed in front of his other friends all at once. Now that's some serious trauma for an 11 year old kid. He tries to look at the bright side, but you know he's hurt. Man, I would be too! That's rough.

After spewing out my usual bit of lame advice, I came up with a gem of an idea. I told him that the next time his "best friend" wants answers for his math homework, just give him the wrong answers. He shouldn't be giving answers anyway, but at least this way, it'll teach the kid a lesson.

My son has been plotting all evening how he's going to make sure his former best friend gets a Zero on his next math assignment. Not a 40 or a 20, but a ZERO. I think I might have even heard a bit of evil laughter coming from him too. Revenge is sweet.