Hanging Posters A.K.A. Bonding Time!

As she gets older, I am seeing more and more of myself in my daughter Grace.  This is a notion that mortifies her and she absolutely denies any of it. But, the truth is, she has my height, my dimples, my anxiety, and turns out, my propensity for being star struck.

This was clear as I entered her room the other night and she was hanging up her latest One Direction poster, chatting cheerfully about their latest offerings on Instagram and texting with her “Aunt Marie” about the countdown to the concert she gets to go to this summer (a Christmas present). 

It took me back to when I was 13 and had my first celebrity crush (you know who!). Then, listening to her, I realized that even though we have this fanatical behavior toward musicians in common, our experiences as 13 year olds are totally different.

She can pursue her passion for 1D (I think that’s the hip way to refer to them) via Instagram, Vine, Facebook, YouTube (I know she does this as I monitor her accounts very closely). Of course, since I grew up back in the olden days, none of these things were at my disposal as I pursued my beloved. (I think we all know who I’m talking about here.) I had to save up all my babysitting money each month to buy a teen magazine and that was my only mode of information for my main man. But watching her hang posters, now that is something I can relate to.

Of course we all know who adorned my wall back then. (Okay, for those of you new here and just tuning in, it was RICK SPRINGFIELD!) I remember carefully taking the posters out of those well-read magazines and plastering my wall.

A friend last weekend told me I shouldn’t encourage such behavior in Grace, that it’s not healthy for her to put celebrities up on a pedestal. While I certainly respect her opinion, that’s not the way I think about it.  The way I see it, music comforts Grace when she is anxious, keeps her company on long car rides, and gives her a playful side when, sadly for a 13-year old these days navigating bullying and peer pressure and all the other stuff that comes with middle school, finding something that just brings joy is a great distraction.  

So, I help her pick out the posters, and figure out where to put them in her room (lighting is VERY important, we cannot have a glare on Niall’s face). Soon enough she will grow up. She may not outgrow this childhood obsession, obviously I didn’t. But I know she will, as she matures, put it into perspective. I did. Now the pictures that adorn my wall are of the real super stars in my life, my kids. My Good Life.