During her childhood, Jade lived in many places, frequently moving due to her father's job. So she kept having to make new friends, which she was never very good at. So you could often find her hidden somewhere with a book, or jotting down notes on whatever interested her at the time.

Jade found herself fascinated by philosophy, religion, science fiction, and what today is refereed to as critical thinking.

She was usually the outsider, but could entertain her peers when she chose to. She always felt somehow different from other people, both adults and her peers. Not better or worse, just different. And that was never safe to discuss because it always made her sound superior to the other. But that was OK since when she did share that perspective, and was marginalized, she still had her books and what she would discover in adulthood a bit of a stoic perspective. Things that were beyond her control did not deserve the worry, regret, or shame others seem to accept.

In fact, as comfortable in her own skin as she was, she grew up convinced that she was substandard. Not as smart, not as promising, and not as well adjusted as all the other kids about her age. Again, it was something outside of her control. But in her mid teens, she had fallen into "the in crowd" of theater, band, and choir kids where she was very comfortable, but still outclassed. Well after awhile those kids realized that Jade's self deprecation was not simply an act, but she really believed it. So they all got together and had a meeting with her. They convinced her that in many ways she was exceptional. After all, substandard and normal kids did not do the things she was constantly doing. Those things were done only be kids who were exceptional. And then, they were only done very well by a small percent of the exceptional kids.