4 Friday, July 15, 2022brooklintowncrier.com My daughter just turned 13 and is now officially a teen. I remember turning 13 and thinking I was suddenly all grown up yet I didn't feel I was. My daughter expressed similar feelings as we prepared the final details of her party later that day. "I don't feel any different," she said. "I thought I would feel older". What does it mean to be 13 in today's world? It means you're an adult in training though really just a big kid. There may be more expectations but at times you still want to watch cartoons, play in a sprinkler, or build a fort in the living room. 13 is about transition. Ask girls this age what they want for their birthdays and the choices range from laptops and iphones to puppies and stuffies. Some are ready to move on to more grown up items while others aren't in a hurry to grow up. 13 is also experimental like trying out makeup and clothing that appears more adult and trendy. No longer do they grab a tee shirt and go. Outfits are now carefully planned. 13 is about mystery. Before, boys were just there and annoying. Now the girls talk about them differently…while still complaining about them being mostly annoying. 13 is about understanding the world outside of their world. They take interest in social injustice, why things are happening and how they can have an impact. They see everything as black and white and look to adults to explain the grey parts. 13 is about independence. Before, they wanted us there all the time. Now its about being with their friends. I've suddenly become an uber driver to my 13 yr-old. I used to hover in the wings when I took them to the mall. Now? I am expected to "shop on my own." 13 is about goals. At this age, they start taking their performances seriously, whether in sport or other activities. They put a little more effort into things they care about like practising shots or playing songs over and over. 13 is about home and family. After a day out with their friends and experiencing a little bit of the world on their own, they are content to be home with their families. As parents, we may even still get a hug or snuggle - if the mood strikes. This is 13 Our Brooklin Kids by Leanne Brown Ainey, Erin Ajwani, Diya Almasy, Ryan Aloe, Karina Alty, Nathan Ambra Michael Anderson, Chloe Andrews, Gavyn Antonucci, Luca Arcand, Liam Arnold, Jayden Avis, Noah Babu, Elamparuthi Baird, Izzy Bal, Arjun Baldeo, Kurtus Baldeo, Marcus Ballantyne, Andrew Baptista, Emilia Barber, Carrie Barrett, Alexa Bayliss, Daniel Beck, Dylan Beer, Emma Belford, Brooke Bell, Zander Bendzsa, Connor Bickle, Carter Bird, Emily Bloom. Alexander Bloom, Nicola Bogers, Kaiya Bolger, Aidan Bonnis, Corbin Boundy, Mavrikk Boundy, Zennen Bramma, Josh Bratton, Kieran Braznick, Jules Brouwer, Ella Brown, Jordan Bucholski, Evan Burns, Bailey Burrowes, Megan But, Megan Byers, Declan Campbell, Emily Carmichael-Diabo, Jason Cassidy, Maeve Catto, Griffin Chaney, Luke Charbonneau, Nicole Chen, Damien Chiusolo, Paige Chong, Cameron Chung, Kayden Clack, Cameron Clausner, Lukas Collins, Nolan Condron, Hannah Connelly, Mac Connolly, Nolan Cooper, Benjamin Coote, Emma Courtemanche, Nicole Cowan, Connor Cowan, Shelby Cribby, Melissa Crilly, Hannah Cuddy, Maggie Cuenca, Ashton Cunningham, Joe Dale, Logan Dalfino, Naya Damra, Reena Davis, Ryan De Matteo, Ethan Declute, Caleb deHaas, Matthew DeMille, Max DeSouza, John Dhani, Emma Dickson, Liam Donaldson, David Drummond, Alec Drysdale, Sarah Duivesteyn, Reid Dunford, Ben Dunk, Josh Dunlop, Alyssa Dunn, Chad Dunn, Nolan Eales Harwood, Max Eckersall, Thomas Elgazzar, Sara Emery, Olivia Erwin, Casey Evans, Ella Faria, Liara Fayle, Logan Ferguson, Ben Fisher, Monet Foster, Andrew Foster, Josh Francis, Drake French, Lucas Galletta, Matthew Garey, Abby Garey, Jack Gaudaur, Quintin Gaull, Hailey Geci-Bourk, Ryan Giardullo, Michela Gibb, Holden Gibbons, Morgan Gilbert, Jocelyn Giles, Greg Giotis, Cassandra Grammatikos, Cole Grant, Justin Green, David Groen, Madison Groskopf, Ryan Gummow, Drew Gunda, Sean Haber, Andrew Hagerman, Cody Haire, Brendan Hambly, Brett Harley, Jessica Harrington, Jenni Hartwig, Melissa Harty, Eamon Harvey, Jordyn Hatfield, Grayden Havery, Shane Hayes, Ainsley Helsdon, Benjamin Henderson, Owen Hendry, Dean Hennessey, Kellan Hession, Brendan Heudier, Emily Hills, Thomas Hogenboom, Hope Hogg, Josh Holliwell, Lauren Holmes, Rachael Holyer, Alexander Howell, Jason Hughes, Ella Hughes, Madelyn Hutchinson, Jaxson Irving, Liah Isaac, Alexis Isovski, Kristian Ivankovic, Dylan Jackson, Ella Jaglowitz, Victoria Janovitz, Ethan Jarvie, Emily Jeffery, Alexander Jones, Carter Jones, Colton Jordan, Taos Kabrit, Ryan Kasem, Senareet Kastanas, James Kendall, Jillian Khan, Hamza Kidd, Lucy Kierstead, Evan Kim, Avery Kiriazis, Simon Kitching, Emma Kondell, Jaylen Krissilas, Kat Kuzenko, Tayah Lagace, Anna Lampert, Mia Lanca, Ryan Lane, Brianna Law, Emily Legro Tobon, Andres Lindell, Kaydance Ling, Sarah Loach-Perry, Bralyn LoGiacco, Natalie Lomer, Mikaela MacIntosh, Pete MacNeil, Ewan Mahoney, Charlie Mantle, Taylor Marks, Teagan Marshall, Ethan Masri, Lucas May, Tyson McCallum, Nolan McDonnell, Sofia McGregor, Jacquelyn McKean, Catherine McKee, Zoe Mckinlay, Claire McLean, Jacob McLean, Nolan McNally, Liam McPherson, Ava Meaker, Ben Mendez, Miguel Michelsen, Tyler Middleton, Ryan Mitchell, Sebastian Momand, Issaq Montague, Zenebia Moore, Jake Moore, William Morrison, Audra Mortimore, Wyatt Mountain, Aliyah Mountain, Jasmine Mountjoy, Matthew Munroe, Shanelle Nagy, Lauren Neath, Abby Nedanis, Thomas Nicholson, Daria Nickerson, Sidney Nigro, Tyler Nino, Isabella O'Donnell, Jade O'Hagan, Kaitlyn O'Toole, Iain Olden, Owen Orellana, Stephanie Osborne, Jacob Patel, Mia Patrick, Jade Patrick, Jenessa Pavek, Mateo Pavek, Nathaniel Penney, Kennedy Pereira, Matthew Peters-Davey, Blake Pfeiffer, Chloe Pflanzer, Aidan Pickering, Zack Plaha, Maleena Pleasants, Leah Pleasants, Skye Plowman, Olivia Plytas, Evan Poranganel, Kaidon Powell, Nathan Puddester, Madeline Ramlakhan, Mikayla Ramos, Lorien Rapoport, Levi Rayner , Liv Reader, Jason Reed, Caden Robidoux, Liam Robson, Brianna Rodrigues, Greven Rodrigues, Reyne Rooney, Tressa Roth, Thomas Rowan, Joshua Saldanha, Melissa Saltouridis-Dewit, Constantin Sargent, Jacob Saunders, Abby Savage, John Scelsa, Logan Schell, Grace Schoeman, Kayla Scott, Emily Scott, Ryan Selim, Tanisha Shaddick, Emma Shaddick, Olivia Shanmuganathan, Risshi Sharland, Lauren Sharples, Ryan Shaw, Alison Shaw, William Shea, Bosco Shewchuk, Benjamin Shoemaker, Megan Sibley, Emily Siiman, Kristina Silverson, Gavin Simms, Kaitlyn Skitch, Sarah Slater, Brayden Smallbridge, Walter Smiley, Daniel Smith, Calder Smith, Mikala Smith, Sydney Stack, Hannah Stevens, Nathan Stewart, Abby Stifani, Antonio Stogios, Mya Sturley, Josh Sullivan, Sara Sutcliffe, Adam Tanzola, Curtis Tayab, Ayesha Taylor, Amanda Templeman, Stephen Thompson, Scott Thornton, Tyler Tiffin, David Timmons, Olivia Van Huyen, Max Vautour, Max Visser, Katrina Waite, Hilary Walsh, Liam Walsh, Tanya Warner , Benjamin Wekarchuk, Kenzie Whimsett, Mackenzie Wight, Owen Williams, Claire Williams, Kyla Williams, Sophia Wilson, Aiden Wilson, Dorian Wonnacott, Alyssa Wu, Jonathan Yanala, Bharat Younas, Raahim Zolis, Jordan Zulauf, Aliyah Brooklin High School Grad Class of 2022