Bon Air- Week 2

Back at Bon Air for week two. What did I notice this week? Well I guess my biggest realization came when my partner began telling me about his first day of school. His story was about the first day of 7th grade- his last “first day of school.” As he was telling me about waking up late and losing his schedule; it made me sympathize with him because even a perfectly innocent topic like the first day of school is a negative one. Why is it that he could only remember it as a bad day? To me it seems like he has filtered out the good memories and is left with the negativity, which he uses to define his life.

In class we began discussing how memories become memories for these boys and honestly, I feel like these memories are not simply something they reflect on when asked about a first day of school they can remember. These memories, these stories have developed into adjectives that define their whole character. Often times, when one experiences a traumatic event, that event sticks with them and becomes the reason they act a certain way. Especially for my partner, I feel as though he is well-versed in the art of trauma. All the memories he tells me end with how they have shaped his personality or how it has made him change his ways. For my partner, and maybe for the rest of the boys in there, these memories are the only essence of their self- they’re the only parts of their personalities they know about.

This post was less of an observation of the session and more of a rant of my thoughts but I really wanted to share my pondering with you guys.