I have never liked young kids. Super noisy, a lot of work to care for, annoying. But I find that I like dealing with teenagers - I have a rebellious streak, so I bond really well with many teens, especially the ones other adults find “difficult” and “problematic”. Often these teens have been completely failed by the adults who were supposed to care for them and protect them and understand them, and that’s why they are the way they are. I have a bunch of teenagers in my life I love who talk to me about their dating life, their sex life, their problems with their parents, their problems at school, being queer/trans in a non accepting family (I’m also LGBTQ ), their trauma, their worries about the future, and what’s going on in their life generally. All stuff they can’t talk about with their parents or anybody else who’s older except for me.

I enjoy being the cool aunt they can have honest convos about sex and drugs and trauma with and I like helping them navigate safely these sorts of things - I think they need a trusted adult like me to support them and often their parents aren’t willing or able to do it.

I’d like to hear about other CF folks who support kids in their own way that is not parenting.