u n b o u n d

there's a R O O M where the light won't find you; holding hands while the walls come TUMBLING DOWN when they do i'll be right behind you EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD

[sheholdsyoucaptivated]

[jaspermathis-blog]

In the spirit of getting involved in school events, I signed up to work backstage for that Drama Club play. I can’t act for crap but you know what I can do? Scour the area for props. Simple task that I can’t mess up, exactly what I was hoping for. Anyone else working on set?

[learning2survive-blog]

Welcome to Degrassi, where you will have memories to last you a life time. I’m being slightly sarcastic. You will have a lot of memories, whether or not they’re good ones is a different story. Hopefully nothing too crazy happens your first year here or you might find yourself running back to being homeschooled. I just realized I’m probably not helping when it comes to giving you a proper welcome, I apologize. But seriously, it’s not so bad once you get used to it but you’re right about there never being a dull moment, that’s for sure. 

[jaspermathis-blog]

This is gonna come out sounding like wishful thinking, I already know it, but I’m gonna need those good memories to outweigh the bad ones. Listen, if something here makes me want to go back to homeschooling, it’s gonna have to be pretty awful. Nah, man, you’re being realistic here so I appreciate that. Are you speaking from experience? You sound pretty well adjusted for someone who goes to school full of traumatizing experiences, apparently. That’s giving me some optimism.

[torisaints-blog]

Sports are awesome like that cause you can fit in right away without even having to try. Not that far fetched, I mean I wanted to go pro for a long time, until I got a concussion, two concussions. I’m not dead though, so that’s good. I know a few guys on the team, I could talk to them, let them know you’re interested. No, it’s not a big deal, I don’t mind. I should be helping people out around the school, it’s kinda my job. Working in your own house is just weird. That’s why I avoid homework as much as I can. Hopefully you’ve been getting used to Degrassi, it’s probably crazy different.

[jaspermathis-blog]

Seriously, you’ve got this huge thing in common with a whole team. I dunno how people adapt when they don’t have a big icebreaker like that. Whoa, concussions are no joke. I’m happy to hear you got out unscathed from them. Aside from not doing sports anymore, that is. You’re already doing a damn good job of it, that means a lot to me. It’s everything and nothing like I thought it’d be. One of the weirdest things I’ve had to deal with is getting to my locker and maneuvering around all people in the midst of tonsil hockey. That stuff isn’t just a stereotype, unfortunately.

[jaspermathis-blog]

Text | Jasper

Jayde: Like you have any /real/ say on the matter! Fine, fine, running it is. I have to warn you, I'm incredibly slow in the morning and like to take my time eating my granola bar... like it might take me twenty minutes to finish it. Do you have that kind of patience? You know, just beginning of the school year blues, nothing in particular.

Jasper: If you hadn't wanted my excellent guidance, you wouldn't have texted me. Pretty sure I've got you there. Man, I've been a morning person forever, but I'll let you revel in your granola bar. I'm probably gonna be doing my stretches while you sit on your porch, milking every second of your snack. Gotcha. That hasn't kicked in for me yet since I'm still getting the hang of public school, but I'll get there in time. It's inevitable.

[jaspermathis-blog]

Text | Jasper

Jayde: Should we go for a run tomorrow morning together, or should I just stay in bed and then proceed to complain about it at a later date? You decide.

Jasper: As if I'm gonna let you slack on this. I'm definitely down for a run. I've been needing a running partner and clearly /you/ need some motivation. Are you just feeling lazy or do you got something else making you want to stay in bed?

[kick-muthafrickin-booty-yeah]

“Play for the name on the front of the shirt, and they will remember the name on the back”

- Tony Adams (via kick-muthafrickin-booty-yeah)

[finestmoment]

Exactly, but everyone thinks gymnastics is a one person kind of ordeal, and I get that. But we need more than just our bodies and a mat to get the show on the road. It’s ridiculous and unfair. Life might not be fair, but it shouldn’t be that way at school, we should all have an equal opportunity to succeed and enjoy what we enjoy. I think I’m leaning towards this petition, a few people have agreed that it’s a decent idea. Now I have to google how to do that… brilliant thinking, Jayde.

[jaspermathis-blog]

I’ve never tried it myself but to me, any sport is about collaboration. You’re there to cheer each other on and learn together, y’know? That’s what makes the entire sport worthwhile. Well said. You’ve got half the battle down with deciding to do a petition -- you’ll figure out the process of making it after. Y’know, you could also go to that student council club. They seem pretty chill and the president guy of it was really nice when I talked to him. That’d probably give you a leg up, combined with the petition.

[aidensaunders]

Your first time going back to public school is high school? Man, more power too you but it seems like you’ve already gotten used to the craziness. I’ve heard Degrassi is pretty good with their sports teams. I’m new to the school but I plan on being on the hockey team. What do you play?

[jaspermathis-blog]

Strange, right? I’m way in over my head but I know I’ll get the hang of it eventually. Ha, thanks. Even though it’s basically a free for all from my vantage point, I like it a lot. The hustle and bustle, different people mingling and all the clubs after school. I dig that sorta stuff. You’re new too? Awesome, I don’t feel so alone now. Man, hockey’s like, total nostalgia for me. My brother and I played a lot when he started playing on his high school team. I’m into baseball more than anything else, but I’ve always liked football and all that too.

[goodnightjcob]

So is home school like, you do what you want basically? Get up when you want, do what you want, Math is whenever? Cause that sounds like a sweet deal to me. This place is a zoo, man, no lie, but try to ignore the crap and fit in with some people you can stand to be around. Personally I wouldn’t recommend jocks, but more power to you if you’re good at sports.

[jaspermathis-blog]

I wish. It’s surprisingly more strict than regular school. It was for me, anyway. ‘Cause like, you’re always home. You can’t say you have a fever and can’t deal with walking around school or being in a classroom. My mom was super strict about it too since she didn’t want me falling behind. Total zoo, couldn’t have said it better myself. I’m guessing you’re not too into sports yourself? Can’t blame you; they’re time consuming as hell. It’s a labor of love for me. What are you into then? Like, hobbies and stuff? I’m Jasper, by the way.

[torisaints-blog]

I mean, I hear you on all of that, I really do… but I can’t keep my focus. All I wanna do is ask what sports you’re into, cause that’s my kinda subject. I used to be on the football team so I kinda know all the ins and outs of Degrassi’s teams. I could help you out if you want, since you’ve been doing the whole stay at home thing. By the way, that sounds both amazing and weird. I’d probably never get any work done. And I know my mom would hate being my teacher. She’d probably be full naming me the whole way through.

[jaspermathis-blog]

Ha, by all means, man. That’s just about the only thing I’ve been able to think about since getting here. I’m down to play basically anything, but my main sport has always been baseball. I wanna go pro someday, that’s my dream. Probably far-fetched but I gotta try at least. You played football? Nice. I like it when the season comes around; I’m trying to get on the team right now even though I’m a little late, but my brother’s always been into it more. Dude, that’d be amazing if you could, I can’t even say how much I’d appreciate it. It was weird to adjust to, that’s for sure. I went to grade school and then went right to home schooling. Luckily my mom is a teacher but yeah, still strange. I tried to get out of doing work all the time, that part was torture.

[fifiones-1-deactivated20170423]

That’s got to be a strange transition. I thought it was weird transferring into a public school after having gone to prep schools all my life. It’s definitely a weird experience. What was even weirder was going back to a prep school after having attended a public school for six months. It’s an odd feeling of ‘it’s good to be home’ followed by ‘this is nothing like I remembered it.’ Oh, so you’re a jock? What sports are you interested in playing?

[jaspermathis-blog]

It’s seriously like two totally different worlds. I went to grade school for a while, got used to that whole thing. But then my parents were shifting around too much and it wasn’t worth starting at one school, then leaving, and starting fresh again somewhere else. Home schooling was the closest to normal I was gonna get. You did prep school before going here? Was it anything like that stereotypical experience you see in movies? Ha, yeah, guess I would be considered a jock. I like almost anything but my true love is baseball. I practically came out of the womb playing it.

[jaspermathis-blog]

do you want people to know about your transition, or would you rather them never know?

Is it weird to say both? I like having a clean slate here, just being Jasper, an inconspicuous guy who blends in with everyone else. But then it’s like, I’m not ashamed of who I am. I know there’s nothing wrong with me or the course my life has taken. But the whole mindset of high school scares the crap out of me. All you gotta do is watch the news and it’s obvious that people like me aren’t necessarily safe at school. It sucks, but it is what it is. I wanna feel like a normal kid just going to public school, and I want to be Jasper -- not Jasper, the kid with this unconventional past.

[finestmoment]

When my cousin told me that Degrassi used to have a gymnastics squad, I was expecting a little more than some fold out mats and an 8 foot balance beam in the gym. I dunno, how crazy would I be for starting up a petition to get better equipment for the girls? I think the football team could spare some of their sponsors.

[jaspermathis-blog]

That’s all they have for equipment? Damn, Degrassi’s dropping the ball on this. No pun intended. I say go for it. I’ve noticed there’s a ton of resources and funding for other sports but they can’t just leave the gymnasts out. Your team could do really great in competitions if they gave you quality training equipment, which would then make all the investing on their part pay off. Everybody wins.

[gcldenhcur]

I spent my lunch looking through old yearbooks to find my brother’s class. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed. There were some seriously entertaining pictures in some of those yearbooks. And he hasn’t answered my calls for a couple days so that’s all the Craig contact I’ve had. Ridiculous.

[jaspermathis-blog]

Depending on how old your brother is, that picture could have been pretty embarrassing. My parents made the mistake of keeping their yearbooks in the bookcase, so naturally my brother and I have combed through them tons of times. My dad thought he was such a badass, but that mullet did him no favors. I’ll never let him live it down.

[jaspermathis-blog]

The weirdest thing is going to public school after a stint of being home schooled. I totally forgot how chaotic cafeterias are and how quickly gossip spreads around. And then there’s classroom dynamics in general, it’s crazy. I’ve literally been a week and there’s never a dull moment. Maybe I’m a total wimp for getting surprised by it, but that’s what you get when your parents are total education snobs. At least I can dip my toe into all the sports teams at Degrassi, that’s what I’m looking forward to most.

[visionsofdegrassirp-deactivated]

Meet JASPER MATHIS. He is seventeen years old and a JUNIOR at Degrassi High. Like everyone, Jasper has a secret. He is a transguy who fully transitioned while being homeschooled.                 Suggested FCs: Reece King, Dudley O'Shaughnessy, Khylin Rhambo, Jarod Joseph

Biography–

Jasper considers himself to be a very authentic and genuine person. His story follows the narrative that a number of LGBT people relate to. From a young age, it felt as if he was always trying to fit into a space he didn’t belong – like he was trying to wear his right shoe on his left foot. It became apparent to his family that Jasper, then named Jasmine, needed support to feel like everything on the outside matched the inside. His mother and father were fortunately accepting and allowed Jasper to transition, going from hormone blockers to halt the onset of puberty, and then to testosterone as he aged. Now, Jasper has eased himself into a life as a full-time guy, and also had top surgery to create the flat chest he’d always wanted. By all accounts, Jasper is a healthy, happy teenage boy. And while that’s true, people outside of his family don’t realize just how much he’s gone through to get to that point. Jasper was homeschooled from grade six to ten, spanning the time from when he began socially transitioning, up until he felt confident in his ability to blend in with any other male in public. Growing up with an older brother, Jasper’s taken from his example and easily fell into the role of a typical boy. Now he’s entering his junior year and couldn’t be more excited. His passion is sports, namely baseball, and being in public school means being able to partake in team sports. As of right now no one knows about Jasper’s reasons for being homeschooled or that he ever went by any other name than his own. Jasper’s nowhere near ashamed, but he does enjoy the normalcy of keeping his trans status to himself. There’s so much more to him than simply being transgender, and he wants people to know about the more important facets of who he is. Will he be able to keep the details of his past to himself despite being immersed in school life? And will he be able to handle when he realizes an estranged friend from the past, Mike Dallas, also attends Degrassi?

JASPER MATHIS is TAKEN.