How to be a teenager

AIM: How to be a teenager

Vocabulary: Character, Stepping Stone, Hope, Faith, Patience

Motivation: Good Morning, My name is Ms. Chavez and I began this blog for my most favorite people in the world, teenagers. I believe you are the one group of people that can shift the way the world is going and if all of us adults would practice trust, faith, compassion and empathy we would be in better hands. I am able to write all of this because I once was a teenager and I remember what it was like.

Being a teenager in high school, no matter where in the world you are is not easy, even if some teens make it look like it is. Granted the world is going through a lot nowadays, and this can add more pain, more frustration, more anguish and angst to these years yet your character and how you build it could allow you to succeed.

This is the mission of my blog #dearteenagers

Questions:

‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ Have you ever thought of that?
Do you have an idea? Has that idea changed as the years gone by?
Or do you KNOW and believe you are working hard to become it?
I know these are a lot of questions but they will always be important ones and ones you should ask yourself, daily.

Lesson:

You see, these years, your teenage years are STEPPING STONES to that idea of who you will become. They may seem endless but they are not. I can still remember many moments of my teenage years, good ones, great ones, scary ones, dark ones and I still remember the people I shared them with, many of who are no longer in my life, and a few that are my friends today after 35 years. Your teenage years, specially those in high school are preparing you for what’s to come, your future.

You may be the teen that A – doesn’t look that far ahead. You may be the teen that B – doesn’t believe they will amount to much. You may be the teen that C – doesn’t really care or is making believe they don’t care. You may be the teen that D – believes you will be ok, because you have been taken care of so far, so what is there to worry about? or You may be the teen that E – doesn’t like who they are, doesn’t like where they’re from and doesn’t want to be where they are.

Remember when I said being a teen isn’t easy? It isn’t and it wasn’t and I survived and am still here. I want to share my survival skills with you.
Student A – You are right to not think that far ahead. My encouragement to you is to ENJOY EVERY DAY as if it were your last on earth. YET plan and make wise decisions that will help you with tomorrow.
Student B – STOP thinking that WAY! You are the SUM of all of your experiences and every day seek to do something special, say something special, create something special, treat yourself and someone special. I know it is HARD and simple to just say this but every minute of your life counts and you can start right now.
Student C – Don’t make believe you don’t care because you do care and if you don’t, ask yourself WHY? Why don’t you care about your future? Are there forces around you influencing your way of thinking? Are those forces people? Are those people your ‘friends’? Is your environment making you give up on yourself? Is that environment Home? It’s ok and it will be ok.
Remember Stepping Stones, these years are experiences that are preparing you for what’s next and one thing is certain, time passes and waits for no one. Therefore tomorrow will come whether you prepare for it or not, so why not prepare? Why would you allow those forces to be more important than your future? more important than You?
Student D – You are blessed! You have entered your life surrounded by caring adults that have fulfilled your needs. Your mom, and/or your dad, your family have been your allies, your advocates, your protectors yet ask yourself this question, will they outlive you? Have they guaranteed or can they guarantee to live as long as you live? Is it not the order of nature that You will bury them? I know this may not be a fun topic, but it is a real one and becoming an adult is very real. Take it from this adult.
Ask these amazing people what they would like in return for taking care of you. If they say nothing, they are lying. They want you to make them proud and your success is the key. Success can be defined ONLY by YOU, and living off your family is not success. Unless you were born into wealth and ALL of the teens I have taught have not, being taken care of could be acceptable yet even the wealthy want their family members to find purpose and contribute to the family fortune not leech off it. So don’t be a leech.
Student E – This too shall pass. These years are temporary; this pain is temporary and it will pass. Stop hurting yourself because you believe it will lessen the pain. Stop hating the circumstances you were born into; you had no control over that. Make the most of where you are because there is nothing you can do to get out NOW. Right Now is not the same as tomorrow and you can determine where you will be tomorrow IF you plan for it. Turn the uncomfortable, the hate, the pain, all of the dark thoughts into fuel. You need the fuel to get out, and welcome your future.
If anything, when you survive all of this misery, it will show you what you are capable of, it will strengthen your character. Have hope and faith of better things to come. Patience may not be your strong suit but it can teach you so much.

After thinking about what you want to become as an adult, you may have identified with one of the five students above, unbothered, like Student A or D, uninterested like Student B, or indifferent like Student C or E. You also may have identified with a little bit of all and there’s the answer to ‘How to be a teenager’, truth is there is no right answer.
You are learning and every day you will identify differently because you are learning.
You could be student A today on this topic and student C tomorrow on matters of the heart. That’s the journey and it will look different and be different and feel different for everyone.

One important point though, don’t be too hard on yourself nor on others, and especially on those that are caring for you.

Exit Questions:

What kind of teen are you today when you think about your future?