“Life is a battle, and we will win.”
I have said those words many times. On Wednesday night, I got to watch more than 50 people live them. We gathered at the Sun Prairie Public Library for Family Fun Night, a celebration of Life Is a Battle and We Will Win, with one big purpose: to rally around mental health and resilient youth. Kids and grown-ups. Neighbors and new faces. A whole room choosing to support one another.
Timid, curious, and then… laughing
If you have ever walked into a room full of people you don’t know, you know the feeling with shoulders a little tight, eyes rapidly scanning for a familiar face. That’s how many folks came through the door: timid, unsure, but curious.
Curiosity is a wonderful place to start.
Within 10 minutes, the room had changed. We kicked things off with a rousing round of musical chairs and a game of keep-the-balloon-up, and suddenly people were laughing, chatting, and swapping chairs with strangers who didn’t feel like strangers anymore. Media 22 kept the energy high with an amazing playlist (seriously, the music did half the work!).
Play is powerful. It lowers our guard and opens the door to connection, and connection is exactly what so many of our kids are missing right now.
Going deeper, together
Once the room was warm, we opened the book. Dr. Jaz, lead author and publisher of Life is a Battle and We Will Win Volume 2, joined me to guide the evening, and we used reflection questions from the book to help adults and kids talk about real life battles, lessons, and the tactics they lean into when life is hard..
We asked everyone to think about a hard moment and what they learned from it.
One young participant shared about losing a beloved pet, and how life hasn’t felt quite full since.
The room got quiet in the best way. The adults leaned in and, one by one, let him know he wasn’t alone. Many of us have loved and lost a pet, and that ache is something we share. His hard moment didn’t shrink, but it got a little lighter, because now other people were carrying it with him.
That’s resilience. Not pretending it doesn’t hurt. Knowing you don’t have to hurt alone.
From there, the questions explored the good stuff too: the skills that help us through, our inner strengths, the identities that make us who we are, and what we love most about each other and about ourselves. People of all ages proudly shared, “I am strong,” “I am creative,” “I am kind,” “I am forgiving,” “I am dependable,” and even “I am the alpha.”
Everyone gets a voice
Next, we came back together as one big group to share what we’d learned. This was one of my favorite parts of the night. Every person, whether they were 10 or 70, had an equal voice in shaping the key takeaways. Little by little, we built a kind of collective wisdom that none of us could have built alone.
Walking out with hope
We closed with an Art Walk featuring work created by the Central Heights Middle School participants. These young artists poured their hearts onto paper, and it showed.
Then everyone added to a collective art piece filled with affirmations of hope. Piece by piece, word by word, a blank space became a wall of encouragement. I can’t think of a better picture of what this night was about.
Thank you
A night like this is never a solo effort. My heartfelt thanks to:
- Dr. Jaz Zapata, for co-hosting and for leading all of the work that went into Life is a Battle and We Will Win.
- Media 22 LLC, for the playlist and the energy
- Journey Mental Health, Insight Counseling and Wellness, Moline Healthcare, and the Sun Prairie Wellness Coalition for representing valuable resources and initiatives in our community
- The Sun Prairie Public Library, for opening your doors
- Culver’s (Main St, Sun Prairie), for supporting our families with Scoopie tokens
- The Central Heights Middle School Art Teachers for supporting the beautiful art walk
Each of these groups works every day to build resources, spark connection, and reduce social isolation for our youth. When we link arms, our kids feel it.
Your turn
Before we said goodbye, we asked everyone to do one simple thing: take what you learned and share it with someone else. So I’ll ask you, too.
What is one hard moment that taught you something? Share it with your child, a friend, or a neighbor this week. You may be the reminder someone needs that they’re not alone.
And if you or a young person in your life is struggling, please reach out. The community partners above are a wonderful place to start, and you can call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, any time, day or night.
Life is a battle. And together, we will win.
