Raising teenagers can be frustrating. I love my teenage son, but there are times when I just can't deal with him. Thankfully, there is a solution, shown in the accompanying photograph.I'm glad my son has a sense of humour. He is getting to be of a size where, were I to attempt an incarceration of this type, I might end up instead to be the one behind the bars.
It is ironic that at the time when our children need our input the most, during their teenage years, they are the least likely to share their fears and frustrations with us. That in turn can be frustrating to us, as concerned parents. Still, everything always seems to end up as it should in the end.
After all, look at how well we, who were teenagers ourselves once, turned out.
Coping with teenagers makes me recall a recent documentary about observing the exciting experience of young falcons, perched high on an apartment ledge across from Central Park in New York. Several avid bird watchers spent days waiting for the young chicks to lunge into the wild blue yonder. Uncertain how to use their wings, they jumped up and down, fluttering nervously, getting further and further away from the watchful gaze of their parents. I think by now you can connect this avian experience with that of anxious mom and dad, anticipating that day when their teenager takes his first flight. As with falcons, we all hope the air beneath the fledgling will prevent a catastrophe. We all have to leave the nest. This is usually after there has been an exchange of words.
ReplyDeleteTake care, and keep loving your young bird.
Wasn't there something in the National Post recently about a study conducted on teenagers that showed they actually have some sort of brain meltdown (how very scientific of me) during those formative adolescent years that renders them virtually incapable of listening to reason and logic? I was certain I'd read something that foreshadowed hell for me. I will have to try to find it.
ReplyDeleteI love the pic, btw!
Is that "Z-Man" in the pic? Not bad. Just don't dote on the boy so much, and let him know you are there when he's confused and trying to resolve things, and he doesn't have to carry the weight alone.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I remember worst about being that age was feeling I had nobody to talk with. I held back a lot from my parents because I didn't think it'd be received well. Finally, I started asking about things by asking them how they handled (place issue here). There were lots of other adults of good rearing around I also consulted.
Yeah, that's the Z-man, Ted. You're right about the importance of being able to talk to your parents. I was able to talk to my mother about some things, to my father hardly at all. He was a great guy, but just didn't seem to know how. I would love to listen to him tell stories about his early years, but was never able to ask for his input or advice on things that concerned me as a teenager.
ReplyDeletePenny: Brain Meltdown appears to be the perfect description of the phenomenon.