I love Autumn - and I love Halloween! Fall brings us the crisp air, the scent of leaves and pines and the beauty of the ever-changing colors of the woods and hills.
This past Friday on October 26, The Patterson hosted the second annual HallowTeen Lock-In. We didn't have a huge crowd, but the teens that attended had a wonderful time (including our adult judges and chaperones), and some of them made some spending money by participating in our contests that evening.
It is not, however, about how much money is awarded in prizes, nor the fact that we had delicious snacks and pizza, or even the delicious punch that looked like swamp water... it's about giving the teens a special night to have fun - a night that they are allowed (with their parent or guardian's permission) to be out past the village curfew and making lots of noise in the library!
As the adults sat around visitng and watching these teens play Just Dance 3 for aolmost 3 1/2 hours straight - we laughed about them dancing with a projected image and not each other, and loving it! We marvelled at how well they danced, because they actually danced! When I was their age, I would just wait for a slow song, so all you had to do was hang on tho each tother and kind of shuffle around in a circle. These guys and gals can really move!
Being with young people brings the stark differences in our realities home. They are still innocents, just not the way we were, exactly. They have access to information we never even dreamed of, and unfortunately, this sometimes makes them more vulnerable. Deep inside they are innocent in their hearts and minds. Deep inside they are still the same confused, wondering kids we were. Deep inside their inner child longs to play - these games help them do that. It's hard to do sometimes, but try to remember that the human brain is not fully developed until well into the late twenties. The wiring is there, but it's not always reaching the spark plugs!
We had a great time being kids, and beign with the teens! I hope you can join us next year on Friday October 25, 2013 for the 3rd Annual HallowTeen Lock-In - I think it will be even bigger and better next year. I've already got ideas...