I have to admit that I was intimidated by the prospect of being a tutor. I’ve never worked with school kids before, and I haven’t been in an educational setting since college. I walked into the workshop training session with little else but my own education and predilection for writing to guide me. So darn it if the optimism, enthusiasm (and instruction) of Nínive, Pilar, Erin and Steve didn’t make me feel like I actually had something to offer.

For me, as first experiences go, last Thursday’s event at the 826LA space ranks up there with Burning Man and tiramisu. After a few hours working with these students, I couldn’t get over how impressed I was with them. Their creativity, honesty, and originality were disarming, and I could’ve listened to them discuss their work for hours more. They have incredible stories to tell, and being in a position to help them develop these stories is a privilege.

Today I drove down to Animo Inglewood with a few other volunteers and met two of the students I’d worked with before, as well as a few new ones. It had only been a few days since I’d last seen them, so their progress hadn’t advanced much. In one case, there’d actually been a major setback; one of the students I’d originally met last Thursday had decided to abandon her story idea after judging it less poignant than the stories of her peers.

I felt this was a tough situation for me to take on, but I did my best. I asked the student several questions about what made her story imperative to her and how the experience was transformative, hoping that within these details we’d find the arc of a much greater narrative. Lo and behold, I believe we did. She walked away today with a refreshed take on her original story, and I can’t wait to see what she has prepared next time.

I still have a few insecurities about being a tutor. For one, I ramble too much, so when working with these students I have to keep reminding myself to shut up and let them do the talking. I have learned that nothing I could say, given all the time and tangents in the world, could surprise or enlighten me as much as they can. I’m looking forward to more.