If you are a long-time reader of this blog, author and bi-coastal BFF Jodi Wing is no stranger to this blog. Her book, “The Art of Social War” was more than just a work of fiction but taught some lessons on social war and how women often don’t help each other — unlike men who work in a different thought and action levels.
Jodi Wing has been working on another book but also has come up with a well-thought strategy to give the younger generation a bit of the knowledge that she (and other women) .
photo by Stefanie Keenan
This is part 3 of the 3 part “essay”. This is probably the section you should read a couple times. From my sort of “white bread” life this was still a wake-up call. I did my time working in schools, battered women shelters and even teaching- but reading Jodi Wing’s experience, gave me a new reality check with life in the big city- inner and outer — because there are suburbs with similar problems.
R is for ‘Rude’
Robin had taken her turn in the Author’s Chair. The assignment was an acrostic exercise based on the girls’ names: R is for ‘resilient,’ O is for ‘observant.’At the end of the day she told me, very upset, that a girl in a pink-striped skirt whispered snidely to her, ‘R is for Rude.’ Well! Robin was simmering, all right. Hostile nations have nothing on het-up pink-and-lavender, bedazzled little girls in escalation mode! We did in fact have a very calm and productive chat with Pink-stripe, and all together we managed to think of about twenty positive adjectives that start with R…
I’ve been visiting with the girls periodically over the last six months, and I have some very exciting news to share: not only will I continue to work with LA’s BEST to mentor this very special group, we are now developing a ‘next-step’ program, to pick-up where the excellent Young Authors leaves off. I am calling it The Art of Peace.
We will workshop The Art of War by writing a play together, with much of the content generated from the girls themselves. In a revolving way, I’d like them to role-play mean girl/victim socially aggressive behavior, and we will practice the assertion and strategic thinking skills necessary to resolve interpersonal conflicts in their everyday lives. And then, we will write about the empowering lessons learned.
I’m extremely enthusiastic and honored by the opportunity to help make a difference in these girls’ lives—and my own, too– through this actionable and empowering information. It will be a ‘real’ Art of War Experiment, and I begin next Tuesday, May 3.
I will continue to post here throughout the period, on my and the girls’ progress.
For more information on LA’s BEST, visit www.lasbest.org
Children are viewed as individuals to be developed, not problems to be solved.
Jodi Wing
Author, The Art of Social War
Thank you to Jodi Wing for this essay and she will keep us updated as to what goes on with her mentoring program. It’s so powerful and look for a podcast to show up about it too.
Stevie Wilson, LA-Story.com
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