TEENAGERS
I just
finished talking to my son about children.
He has two heading smack dab into teenage years. Parenting is not easy, but being a parent to
a teenager is brutal.
Newborns are
tough, you get little sleep and you worry about every hiccup burp and poop. But you love them like you never thought you
could love and they love right back as without you they cannot exist.
Toddlers are
the best, they keep you on your toes, but nothing is as cute as a toddler. Even puppies are not as cute as a toddler,
though this age is very similar to the puppy stage.
From toddler
to a growing school age child, their growth both physical and mental is
astounding and pure joy to watch.
Pre-teen is
still about the same except they may actually start to question your rules and
reasons.
Then there
are teenagers. UGH!!!
Horrible
years.
Horrible for
the teen as they go through so many changes in size, ideas, and HORMONES.
They are
confused and they question everything.
As teenagers
they realize that parents are not always right, and this realization has them
questioning a parent’s EVERY belief and rule. These are very difficult years for the
teenager. I know I hated most of my
teenage years.
Then again, the
only thing more difficult than being a teenager, is having a teenager!
My son’s theory
is that without these years, parents would never want to see their children
grow up and leave, and children would never want to leave.
Your teen
may yell at you, “I wish I had never been born” and you might just have
the same thought.
I mean you
still love them, you still worry about them, but maybe you are ready to love
and worry about them from a distance.
It is an age
where they are upset because you worry so much and want to control them, but
also get upset and think you just don’t care, if you don’t worry and don’t try
to control them.
Neither
child or parent can win the teen years, you just have to try and survive.
My son did raise
an interesting point. I’m not sure if he
is correct or not, I don’t know the Bible well enough, but his point was,
“I don’t
think the Bible has anything about Jesus as a teen. He was born, he learned a trade as any obedient
child of those times, and next thing, he was walking on water and curing
lepers. Nothing about his teen years. The
Bible ignores his teen years. I think EVEN JESUS was horrible as a teen!”
Actually,
looking back, my four teens were pretty good.
We did not fight too much and I enjoyed a lot about those years. Sometime they try and tell me stories of
antics I never knew about. I stop them
in their tracks.
“As long
as you survived, I don’t want to know about it!”
I’ll bet
Jesus tipped a few cows, told a few lies, and skipped out of a few Hebrew classes. Please just keep these stories out of the Bible.
I don’t want to know about that either.
For more, see my manual for "Raising A Teenager"
https://joeh-crankyoldman.blogspot.com/2018/11/raising-teenager.html
Food for thought...
ReplyDeleteThe closest the Bible comes to talking about Jesus as a teen is when he was around 12 and the episode of him staying behind at the Temple after the Passover when his parents were heading home. Scared the kadiddle out of them and once they found him, Luke 2: 51-52 says, "And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man."
ReplyDeleteNothing about cow tipping, but staying behind in the big city without permission while the rest of the family headed home was quite the stunt.
Thanks Mimi, I thought you would have the answer; so he did give his folks a start, but all with good intent.
DeleteI hope Jesus watched where he stepped on his way to tipping cows. Sandals are not safe for the pasture.
ReplyDeleteLooking back I don’t know how I raised 3 teen boys as a single mom. Those were crazy years. I thought I did a decent job - we always ate together at the dinner table and for the most part I thought all was fine. It’s only years later, they tell me about sneaking out at night, driving 100 mph with their friends with their headlights off and other things I really didn’t need to know now. We survived but I’d never have teenagers again. I’ll stick with my dog and my cat!
ReplyDeleteThat's funny! The most we can do is wish teenagers on them.
DeleteIn recent years I've learned about a few things my kids got up to as teens that I never knew about and some things they "confessed " to me I had to tell them "I knew that but let you go anyway." All in all, my four weren't bad at all as teens and there were times we could all laugh at the same things.
ReplyDeleteThe teen years are the start of them thinking they know more than you and it never really ends.
ReplyDeleteWe raised 4 boys and yes those teen years had their ups and downs. The saying that time heals all wounds kind of relates to looking back at those years and thinking my kids weren't too bad all the while knowing my gray hair says otherwise! On the flip side, yesterday was 20yrs since my nephew of 18 passed away in a car accident a mile from home. Time will not heal that wound of a teenager driving too fast to get home. Hug your kids whenever you can.
ReplyDeleteyou write awesomely dear Joe !
ReplyDeleteone reads like walking on silk ground ,sorry if my appreciation does not sound good as after lunch time this is all i got in my mind .we had no power for many days and that made me think if our city was on solar light .today sun came out and so is the light and i could open laptop gladly .
i so enjoyed the post .
i raised three kids and boys are tougher i guess as teens. but one thing that hardships of teenage again more depends on what type of nature child has . i remember i was pathetic teenager .and irritatingly caring . i grew up worst with time
my eldest son gave us no tough time but was flexible sweet soul though not over caring like me thankfully. he is changing now though and has learnt to live independently totally which means he does not share much but only things that are related to us .this is wise of course but will take time to absorb by asian parents .
my middle son was mild in behavior but quite smart and knew when to and how to respond .
but youngest is tougher one and lacks that level of sensibility though is really helpful and caring but he is learning to adjust his emotional side .so we learn lot while raising these three teenagers but i wish i have gift like you to say this as nicely :)
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ReplyDelete