Secret Sea Creature: The Narwhals Gift Exchange

December. The mood at NC grows dense with winter break anticipation and holiday preparations.

Enter: The Secret Sea Creature

NC's teen group, the Narwhals, is an eclectic bunch of bright, curious, and creative young minds. When Narwhal Facilitators Tess and Red started brainstorming about how to mark the end of the calendar year, they talked about a potential new ritual: a gift exchange that would combine learning, sharing, and giving. The Secret Sea Creature was born!

Modeled on a traditional Secret Santa exchange, our version included an educational element: Learning about Love Languages.

The first step was to complete Gary Chapman's Love Language Quiz for Teens. After, we had a rowdy discussion about how the questions warranted different answers depending on whether interacting with a parent, a friend, or a romantic interest. We read aloud our answers, noting the diversity of responses.

Next was the parameters for the exchange:

• You will receive a Secret Sea Creature, randomly assigned based on what day you come to NC.

• You have two weeks to create something unique for them (in secret!).

• Gifts should not cost any money and should be tailored to the recipient based on their interests and love language(s).

• Physical touch was recognized as a significant love language but taken off the table due to consent and comfort of all parties.

And off they went!

For two weeks, they schemed, crafted, and consulted. Some people knew their Sea Creature quite well. Some did not. Each participant reviewed the love languages and interests of their recipient, all of which were displayed on their About Me pages on our wall (a tradition that takes place at the beginning of each year; a display of each person's likes, dislikes, sensitivities, and more). Some gifts were made at home, some were made at NC with a combination of the art room, 3D printing lab, woodshop, and more. All were creative and unique.

December 16-18: The Grand Reveal. With hushed reverence, each Sea Creature gift was revealed to the gathered crowd - no one knew where theirs was coming from, and each one was a surprise. Every gift exemplified creativity and care and was an opportunity to show their recipient: "I see your unique traits and I thought you would like this."

Here are examples of how Narwhals interpreted each Love Language:

Quality Time: A custom board game to play together (which they promptly did, with two others)

Acts of Services: A coupon to be someone's baking assistant in the kitchen

Words of Affirmation: Personalized bracelets with encouraging words

Gifts: A 4-part painting that referenced the recipient's favorite TV show; a hand-crocheted rainbow purse; an anime-themed cookie cutter; cookies; crocheted celestial bodies; and more

All in all, it was a remarkable success and testament to the group's attention to each other. A new NC tradition has been born.