Week 6 – Substantial Blog Quote and Analysis     

     A substantial quote I chose was from The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart when Ruby speaks to herself inside her head after having received a phone call from Jackson Clarke (boyfriend # 13) who wants to meet with her to talk.  Ruby senses this is more than just a normal chat especially since they had just been out the night before to a movie and he kissed her.  She ponders on what this talk might be about. 

“Any idiot would probably know he was going to break up with me, and part of me knew it too.  What else does “We have to talk” mean? and why else would he come all the way over to my house when he had to be somewhere an hour later?” (Lockhart, Chapter 8, p. 124).

    The quote sounds all too familiar for many relationships types (even with family, friends, lover, co-worker, or a supervisor) whether it was said 100 years ago or just last week.  Teen relationships will exist and reading this book can be helpful to a teen who is dealing with relationship problems that are encountered with a boy (or girl) who has become their one true love in that moment.   

     Hearing the words, 'we have to talk', typically means something more than just a casual conversation; there is an underlying message as to why a talk needs to take place.  I had even reflected to my own teenage years in high school of losing a boyfriend or two and this quote made perfect sense to me.  We have all been teens at some point in our life; experiencing a break up with a boy (or girl) will feel at a loss having lost the best thing to ever happen to oneself in that moment of time. Dating as a teen can be tough as well, trying to find the right boy (or girl) who one can feel a connection with, make one feel special, yet sometimes they are not always “the one”.  Teenage relationships sometimes end before they ever really have a chance to begin due to mixed feelings about the person, possibly liking someone else, or maybe the boy (or girl) isn’t ready for a relationship where it wasn’t really what they wanted to have to begin with.

     Regardless, breaking up is hard to do for all involved where they are left with feelings of sadness, anger, hurt, disappointment, or even rejection.  The individual being broken up with will think what did they do wrong? Is there somebody else?  Maybe there will be another chance?  Will there be regrets of the breakup? Can we remain friends?  With so many emotions running rampant, teens will feel like it’s the end of the world and think they will never find another person to fill that void or ever have a relationship again. 

     It is not unusual for friends to share information when they hear about ‘so and so breaking up with so and so’.  This is how rumors begin and can spread without having all the exact details, complicating matters unintentionally and can potentially make school life somewhat of a challenge for those who broke up.  Existing friendships can end; new ones can form and then there are those who try to remain neutral with both parties involved from the breakup.  Teens should learn to be proactive versus reactive in helping to protect the recently broken-hearted by not making comments through social media, being respectful to those involved and think about what if this was happening to you.  Would you want rumors to happen to you?  What would you do to prevent a rumor if it was about someone else?  Students may not always have first-hand information or understand what occurred during a break up where rumors can cause more harm than good to a person’s self-esteem, reputation, or even friendships. Ultimately, kindness does matter for everyone.