That's not funny

A few days ago, OK, wait. A few weeks, maybe even over a month ago, my nephew who is a senior in high school, told us about an assignment his senior English class had. They all had to make a "memory book". Yeah, seniors in high school making memory books. They had to have pictures and "be creative". Now according to the teacher being creative doesn't have to be expensive. Yeah, right lady. How can you make anything creative without spending a lot of money?

Anyway, they had a set of chapters they had to include in their book and if they did not include something for every chapter they were in very real danger of getting a failing grade. Oh, and this particular memory book is worth 30% of their second semester grade! 30% of their grade on what amounts to busy work. For seniors. In high school.

Also a required element of this book was the epilogue. An epilogue which HAD to be titled......"If I had to live my life over again I would..." HELLO!! They are kids, how much life have they lived? And how much could they actually do over? They don't have a choice where they live or go to school or when they get to start driving or a lot of things. My nephew wrote his in a humourous way which I thought was very clever. I hope the teacher thought so too.

This book was due Thursday of this week. My nephew, like any true American teenage boy started his Wednesday about 6 pm. My sister, my mom and I all helped but he really did most of the work. I think it turned out really good and he said the teacher said that she wouldn't change a thing about it, so hopefully he got a good grade.

Speaking of my nephew...around home and around us, his extended family he is very quiet and very...not serious like boring serious but not very outgoing I guess you could say. Well, I guess at school he's totally different. So different in fact, that he was voted the funniest guy in the senior class. On the surface that's a good thing, right? But it makes me a little sad.

Why is he so different at school than he is at home? And which one is the real him? If the funny one is the real him then why can't he be his real self around us? Or is he using the funny to hide the real him around his friends?

I'm afraid to say that I think the funny is the real him and he's not his true self around us. :( I wish I knew how to change that.