JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
For the past three years, independent producer Samantha Broun has visited high schools around the country to interview students about what's on their minds - a first after-school job, playing hockey or living with autism. Students answer questions like, what's something that's important to know about you? Or is there a way in which you're misunderstood? Broun has shaped those conversations into a series she calls Small True Things. Today, we hear from students from schools in LaFayette, New York, Lame Deer, Montana, and Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.
KYLA SEVELO: Learning how to drive has been fun, but also kind of nerve-racking because I started out with my dad, and he was, like, kind of, like, yelling, yelling. But your dad's supposed to do that. And then also, driving with my mom is, like, completely different. I think it was when I first started driving, like, on the road, I was driving with her, and I was going to stop, but she's like, stop, stop, stop, stop. And I'm like, oh, my God. I don't need you to scream to stop. I know that I need to stop when a car stops. But I get where she's coming from because she's probably horrified that I'm driving.
And the hardest part of driving - definitely parallel parking. I absolutely hated it, but I've gotten better at it. But I really enjoy driving 'cause I get to go places with - that I wasn't able to before. My name is Kyla, and I live in Camillus, New York. And I'm looking forward to going to Canada by myself without my parents.
DELORIAN WHITEMAN: The very first time I touched a bass guitar, I didn't know what to do with it. I just kind of rung out the strings, put my cheek against it and felt the vibration. And just feeling that vibration, feeling the heavy strings, that feeling of having it in my arms, man. Yeah, music class became my favorite class after that.
(SOUNDBITE OF GUITAR PLAYING)
DELORIAN: (Singing) I'm me, me be...
I started playing bass, then switched to guitar. That's the instrument I play the best.
(SOUNDBITE OF GUITAR PLAYING)
DELORIAN: (Singing) If you want to destroy my sweater...
I play. I sing. And I think I can do it well. I hope people think I can do it well. I practice day in and day out. I play guitar. I sing. It's what I want to pursue.
(SOUNDBITE OF GUITAR PLAYING)
DELORIAN: (Singing) Oh no, it go.
If she didn't put that guitar in my hands, I don't know where I would be.
(Singing) I think. I sink.
I will never lose this. It's something I will be doing until I'm 50 years old, probably.
(Singing) My sweater. Hold this thread...
I wish everyone could play an instrument, you know. The world would be so beautiful.
(Singing) I'll soon be naked.
My name is Delorian. I'm from the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, Lame Deer, Montana.
(SOUNDBITE OF GUITAR PLAYING)
CAIDEN GARDNER: I love fashion. I got a sewing machine because I was like, I want to just do this. And then I just started sewing. I'm Caiden, and I live in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. My grandma - she was the first one to help me with my sewing. I just wanted to add in, like, a little sideboard to some pants. She, like, literally sat right next to me. She helped me with one complete side, and then she had to go. But she left me with all the information to get it done, and it was done by the next day.
Right now, I'm working on a project making a thrifted blanket into some pants. So I thrifted this really big blanket for $8, where you get, like, good material at a low price. And it's the creative process that's so amazing about it, I'd say. When you're in that mode, you're like, there's nothing else going on anywhere else. It's just me and the sewing machine at that moment. That's it. That's what I love about it.
(SOUNDBITE OF WEEZER SONG, "UNDONE")
SUMMERS: That was Kyla Sevelo (ph), Delorian Whiteman (ph), and Caiden Gardner (ph). They spoke with Samantha Broun for her project, Small True things. You can hear more stories at smalltruethings.org.
(SOUNDBITE OF WEEZER SONG, "UNDONE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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