http://begmetwice.livejournal.com/ (![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
begmetwice.livejournal.com) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2014-11-18 09:52 am
begmetwice.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2014-11-18 09:52 am
Entry tags:
Sex, Dating and Self-Confidence [Tuesday, Period 2]
Today, Irene was dressed -- rather uncharacteristically -- in romantic red and black (though with a pair of warm tights, because she was also not an idiot.) "Good morning, dears," she said warmly, waving the students in. "Let's tackle the box before we talk about today's class topic -- and I suppose this is where I tell you that this'll be our very last class on dating and romantic love. Starting next week, we'll be working more on self-confidence, which is actually the section of this class I've most been looking forward to." She grinned out at them, clapping her hands over the box in her lap. "Well done on making it this far."
With that said, she reached into the box and cleared her throat as she drew out a slip of paper. "eHarmony has a list of questions to ask on a first date. One of them is this:
13. Who was your favorite schoolteacher or college professor? Why?
First off, please answer that question. Second, outside of high school, WHO ASKS THAT ON A FIRST DATE? I'd feel like they're trying to get my bank account security questions or something."
Irene looked up from the paper, frowning a little. "I, for one, would absolutely feel like I was in some sort of interview, if someone asked me that on a first date," she admitted, deciding to address the second question first. "Though I would bet money that someone's printed out that list to take on a date, and read straight from it."
Pause.
"Don't be that person."
As she set the box aside, she added, "My favorite teacher, though, was probably my biology teacher when I was in Year Nine -- that's probably analogous to your freshman year of high school, here. She made it abundantly clear that while we'd be learning how everything ticks physically, the mind was just as, if not more so, important. And while we might all have the same internal parts, for the most part, that doesn't mean we're all the same up here, either." She tapped the side of her head. "I wasn't much for the dissection part, but...well. Let's just say I had no shortage of lab partners willing to do the icky business."
Irene had learned at an early age that she could bat her lashes and get people to do what she wanted, in short.
"Now, moving on -- today we're going to talk about the big picture, as far as dating goes: romantic love."
"That's why we date, isn't it?" Irene offered, smiling as she clasped her hands behind her back. "To find love? Or, at least, that's the supposed crux. As we've discussed, you can date just to have fun, to meet new people, to enjoy yourselves while you're young -- but as you get older, you may want to think about settling down with a certain special someone who's perhaps stood out to you, from your dating adventures."
She held up one manicured finger. "May being the operative word. I certainly haven't found my one and only, nor have I especially been looking." She'd found her one-and-inconvenient-and-impossible, sure, but he didn't count. "There's nothing wrong with never settling down, of course. And there's nothing wrong with not ever falling in love. But I did want to discuss today what love is."
Irene rolled her eyes at herself, already holding up a hand. "I know, I know -- love is, first and foremost, absolutely impossible to quantify. But what does it mean to you, to be in love with someone? Is it different from how you love your friends, and parents? Probably, but how? Is it tied to the sexual aspect of a relationship? Can you be in love with someone you've never even touched? How about someone you've only just met? Does love at first sight exist?" She arched a brow. "What about multiple people at once? To cap off our dating segment, here, let's just talk about what love looks like to each of us. Maybe you've never been in love -- absolutely normal, particularly at your age. But then what would you imagine it to be like? What would you like to experience, should it happen to you? And to those of you who are in love, or have been -- how is it different from other experiences? How did you know?"
She shook her head. "No one here has to talk." Because again, she knew there were couples in the class who maybe had not said the L-word to one another, or who had no such plans to do so, and she didn't want to make anything awkward. "Love is personal, and if you feel like sharing your feelings cheapens them, then by all means, don't."
She took a moment, settling back on her desk and considering her words. "I feel comfortable sharing, for instance, that in my experience, love is dizzying. Love can take you by surprise. It can sneak up on you. It can cause physical reactions that you never anticipated -- dilated pupils, a quickened pulse. It can make you nervous. It can make you obsessive. It can make you foolish, and vulnerable. But there is absolutely nothing else like it, and I'd rather make every mistake all over again than to never experience it again in my life."
And that, even with all the sex talk, and the dating talk, and the coyness, was the most Irene had shared with the class, and it felt...appropriate to be vulnerable. She wanted to show them it was okay. "Anyone else want to talk about what love is to them? Either in abstract, or practicalities -- both are welcome."
With that said, she reached into the box and cleared her throat as she drew out a slip of paper. "eHarmony has a list of questions to ask on a first date. One of them is this:
13. Who was your favorite schoolteacher or college professor? Why?
First off, please answer that question. Second, outside of high school, WHO ASKS THAT ON A FIRST DATE? I'd feel like they're trying to get my bank account security questions or something."
Irene looked up from the paper, frowning a little. "I, for one, would absolutely feel like I was in some sort of interview, if someone asked me that on a first date," she admitted, deciding to address the second question first. "Though I would bet money that someone's printed out that list to take on a date, and read straight from it."
Pause.
"Don't be that person."
As she set the box aside, she added, "My favorite teacher, though, was probably my biology teacher when I was in Year Nine -- that's probably analogous to your freshman year of high school, here. She made it abundantly clear that while we'd be learning how everything ticks physically, the mind was just as, if not more so, important. And while we might all have the same internal parts, for the most part, that doesn't mean we're all the same up here, either." She tapped the side of her head. "I wasn't much for the dissection part, but...well. Let's just say I had no shortage of lab partners willing to do the icky business."
Irene had learned at an early age that she could bat her lashes and get people to do what she wanted, in short.
"Now, moving on -- today we're going to talk about the big picture, as far as dating goes: romantic love."
"That's why we date, isn't it?" Irene offered, smiling as she clasped her hands behind her back. "To find love? Or, at least, that's the supposed crux. As we've discussed, you can date just to have fun, to meet new people, to enjoy yourselves while you're young -- but as you get older, you may want to think about settling down with a certain special someone who's perhaps stood out to you, from your dating adventures."
She held up one manicured finger. "May being the operative word. I certainly haven't found my one and only, nor have I especially been looking." She'd found her one-and-inconvenient-and-impossible, sure, but he didn't count. "There's nothing wrong with never settling down, of course. And there's nothing wrong with not ever falling in love. But I did want to discuss today what love is."
Irene rolled her eyes at herself, already holding up a hand. "I know, I know -- love is, first and foremost, absolutely impossible to quantify. But what does it mean to you, to be in love with someone? Is it different from how you love your friends, and parents? Probably, but how? Is it tied to the sexual aspect of a relationship? Can you be in love with someone you've never even touched? How about someone you've only just met? Does love at first sight exist?" She arched a brow. "What about multiple people at once? To cap off our dating segment, here, let's just talk about what love looks like to each of us. Maybe you've never been in love -- absolutely normal, particularly at your age. But then what would you imagine it to be like? What would you like to experience, should it happen to you? And to those of you who are in love, or have been -- how is it different from other experiences? How did you know?"
She shook her head. "No one here has to talk." Because again, she knew there were couples in the class who maybe had not said the L-word to one another, or who had no such plans to do so, and she didn't want to make anything awkward. "Love is personal, and if you feel like sharing your feelings cheapens them, then by all means, don't."
She took a moment, settling back on her desk and considering her words. "I feel comfortable sharing, for instance, that in my experience, love is dizzying. Love can take you by surprise. It can sneak up on you. It can cause physical reactions that you never anticipated -- dilated pupils, a quickened pulse. It can make you nervous. It can make you obsessive. It can make you foolish, and vulnerable. But there is absolutely nothing else like it, and I'd rather make every mistake all over again than to never experience it again in my life."
And that, even with all the sex talk, and the dating talk, and the coyness, was the most Irene had shared with the class, and it felt...appropriate to be vulnerable. She wanted to show them it was okay. "Anyone else want to talk about what love is to them? Either in abstract, or practicalities -- both are welcome."
Re: Discussion: Love! [11/18]