Teens August 7, 2017 Issue

Facing my parents’ divorce

Kaily Johnson

I’ll never forget the first time I came home from camp. After my parents picked me up from the airport, we went to the park, where I found out my parents were getting a divorce. Feeling broadsided and shocked, I immediately blamed the divorce on my going to camp. After that, when my mom asked me each summer if I wanted to go back, I always said no because I was afraid that if I left, I would come home and be broadsided again.

Eventually, I did return to camp, and while I was there that first summer back, I couldn’t believe I had avoided going back for so long, because my experience didn’t include any sort of pain during or after, the way I had feared. The next year after that, I returned to camp without any fear or hesitation.

That year, I had a lot to learn. I was in a special program, and we had a blast. Everyone became a family. But even though I had overcome my fear of going back to camp, the experience still triggered that bad memory of returning home to upsetting news. I began crying out of nowhere and sobbed every time I thought about my father. Over the course of the two weeks, we participated in activities such as the ropes course, river rafting, and camping, and while I was having an amazing time, those bad memories were definitely holding me back.

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