My group really got my creative juices flowing when I was in the process of considering what and how to write about sexting. I really connected with the concept of co-authorship that I read about in Nakkula and Toshalis’ Understanding Youth. I really feel that this week I was experiencing co-authorship, in the best sense, with all of my group members. I went home really FEELING what I wanted to say to an adolescent about this concept and I spilled these meaningful words onto a page…

To An Adolescent:

You are writing your own story,
but how can I help?

As you experiment and discover,
you learn from the past,
to build a new part of yourself.

I don’t want to edit it
and no one should,
but sometimes I worry
that you are looking to find
an identity not your own
to show you’re just like the rest
so you can blend into a world
that is often judgmental and cruel.

You follow the fashions,
the gossip, the trends,
but you are unique
and that’s why I say,
find your own way to say:
“This is me!”

This is an important time in your life
when you are scripting your text
with cues taken from the plots
of other authors in your life:
your family, your teachers,
your peers and your loves.

Your page is not blank;
your story has already begun.
The characters, the setting, the twists,
the ups and the downs.
For good or not,
the risks that you take
are the core of your plot.

No story is perfect and that’s part of life.
What would stories be
if all the characters acted alike?
Have you ever thought
what your story would read like?
Would there be conflict or intrigue?
Mystery or despair?
I would love to know!

Someday, someone, somewhere
will be reading your story.
They already are!
So, what do you want to portray?

There are no drafts in life.
I can’t tell you what to write.
It’s all up to you!
I just know that you have something really special to say.

By Kathryn Albright