Parents
Talking builds trust

How willing are you to work at talking with your parents?
Rachel, Orondé, Katti, Wendy, Jim and Judd discovered that their parents would listen, and that they got a lot of support from their mom or dad.

RACHEL: A lot of kids have tension with their parents, and pull away. I did.

ORONDÉ: My mother's asking me stuff, and I wanted to tell her to leave me alone.

KATTI: You don't want them around, but I needed them. I didn't always have such a close family.

WENDY: I was mad at my dad a long time. I blamed him for not being there. I realized it was a waste of time. I could have spent time getting to know him. I'm doing that now.

JIM: My mom would try to talk. I'd be like, no. I'd try to keep it in when I really needed to talk.

RACHEL: I was like, "Oh, I am so independent, I don't need you guys." My mom and my dad said it made them sad. They didn't want to smother me. I'm glad I listened. I've needed them.

ORONDÉ: Finally, I talked. "Mom, what do you honestly think of me?" She said, "You know I love you. You're my baby." That's when I started opening up.

WENDY: I could talk to my step-mom. She was a good listener and didn't judge. She's the reason I trust adults.

RACHEL: Having a positive relationship with my dad, I know what kind of man I'm looking for. My mother's given me unconditional love. Everything stems from that: friendship, advice, discipline.

WENDY: For a girl to have a relationship with her dad is a security blanket. You have your dad to fall back on.

KATTI: When I had a problem they said no matter how bad it was they're still going to love me.

JUDD: I didn’t always talk to my dad. But I got teased at school and he knew something was going on and got me to open up. Knowing that my dad is there for me and was a shoulder to lean on is the key to my success. I can talk to him about anything at anytime.