Finding My Tribe
Real friendship isn't about being in the same grade. It's about being in the same world.
The biggest myth about unschooling is that it's lonely. In reality, it was the only time I felt I could actually choose my community instead of having one assigned to me by my zip code.
When I was 13, my "best friends" included a 17-year-old aspiring filmmaker, a 40-year-old carpenter, and a few other unschooled kids who shared my obsession with retro-gaming.
Because I wasn't segregated by age, my social circle was built around values and interests. I didn't have to navigate cafeteria politics or hallway posturing. I just had to show up and contribute to the things I cared about.
School socialization teaches you how to survive a hierarchy. Unschooling socialization teaches you how to build a network.
Looking back, the emotional maturity of my unschooled peers was staggering compared to the high schoolers I knew. We weren't "weird"; we were just practiced in the art of human connection across lines of age and experience.