My youngest has always known what he wanted to be. His dream was always to be a paleontologist. He has been working towards that end goal. He has joined college prep programs, he has checked grades, and he has even researched the colleges that would give him what he needed. Those college searches were done every couple of years to be sure that he was keeping up with program changes.

Then, in May 2025, something changed. His mental health is a big part of that. We had some really scary moments. He came to me and asked if he could quit dancing. HE had just finished his production, but didn’t want to participate in the recital, and wanted to just be done. He, however, didn’t want to be done teaching dance. He also wanted to switch his focus to theater.

We got him some mental health help, a crisis team to work with him through the desperation and pain he was feeling. We started him on some meds to help with the anxiety. This helped him to be comfortable talking to me more openly about some other things that had been going on with him. We’ve always had a really open and honest relationship, but there were some things that he had been worried would upset or disappoint me.

One of those things was that he was no longer looking at paleontology as his dream goal. He wants to teach dance or theater to young kids. He is already doing that somewhat. He teaches both ballet/tap and hip hop classes to younger kids. He loves it. So much. This change would also allow him to stick closer to home for college. A plus in my book.

He started high school in August, and I was concerned that he wouldn’t handle the bigger school well. I was wrong. He is flourishing. He has found his people, he enjoys most of his classes, and is even understanding the math he was struggling with last year (clearly it was a teacher issue).

The school started off strong, offering a trip to Italy and Germany in 2027. Of course, my kiddo was all in for that. We agree. It is a dream trip. So we signed him up. There was talk about a scholarship that we needed dearly to make this trip work. That scholarship never came through. So, now we’re scrambling to make the payments so he doesn’t miss out. The original plan was that I would DoorDash, and everything I made doing that would go towards the trip. Unfortunately, the only hours I can do that are after 9 pm, then the orders dry up around midnight. I was working 2-4 nights a week and only making $100 or so, which was barely covering the gas I was using driving around. So now we are trying to come up with alternatives. We have missed the last two payments and are close to losing the space. There is a deadline (1/11/26) for a certain portion ($600 remaining) to be paid. I don’t know where this money is coming from. But I am doing my witchy thing, and I’m asking for help from friends and family. We are navigating this shift and supporting him in chasing what lights him up. We’re also working through the practical side of making that dream possible, working to make this trip possible. And while we’re doing everything we can on our end, we could use a little help. If you feel called to support or share, it would mean more than we can say. Either way, thank you for holding space for our family and helping Rainy (Seneca) take his dream trip!

All of that to say, if you’re the parent of a teenager, even one who KNOWS what they want, be open to change, be flexible, and remember to love them through the pain. The calmer you stay, the more you let them be them, the more honest they will be with you. You love them, and it can be hard to watch them change. But isn’t that what teenage years are for? Discovering who they are and where they want to go? I know I want my kids happy and healthy, whatever that looks like.

I know this isn’t as put-together as some of my posts. Honestly, this was one of those “I just have to write it out” moments. If you’re still here, thank you for reading.