Dick is about 18/19 when Jason becomes Robin and 20/21 when he dies, right?
I've worked with young people like half my life (im 30), most of that in higher ed. Lemme tell you something about young adults. About the 18/19/20 year olds who are away from home for the first time. They're being told they're adults now but have no manual for how to do any of the things, but are also being underestimated despite having a wealth of lived experience. They're constantly looking for the adultier adult for guidance/permission/support.
They are just now realizing that their childhoods weren't normal, or that their parents are humans capable of making mistakes, or that they are bitter/jealous/angry about being treated differently from their sibling(s), despite still loving and being grateful for all of them. A small but significant portion of them are experiencing symptoms of mental health disorders (looking at you, bipolar and schizophrenia) for the first time and no one who knows them is around to tell anyone that their behavior isn't usual for them. They are negotiating their identities: some of them will come out, some will experiment with new pronouns, some will join protests, some will change their names, some will go to therapy for the very first time, some of them are learning the words to their trauma for the very first time, almost all of them will make new friends and lose old ones over and over again.
They have so much emotion, imagination, pain, and resilience. It's why I love working with this population. It's why I love writing and reading YA fiction. It's why I'm petitioning for us all to give Dick a little bit of grace when we read and write about him gaining a new brother, while away from home and struggling to cobble together a new identity and making new friends and losing old ones and learning the words to his trauma for the very first time. Just a little 🤏🏾
Addendum: many of you are in this age range; please know that what you're feeling is normal. You're doing your best.
