THE TEENAGE HURDLE

Call it whatever you want to call it, or let the many dictionaries and encyclopedias give you all the meaning but the word teenager, to me, means one who must have it all;

          All the eyes on him or her

          All the money in his/her pocket

         All the attention on him/her

         All the expensive clothings in his or her closet

         All the tastiest meals in his/her mouth

         All the praises on him/her etc…

There’s only one word to sum it up, the teenager is SELFISH. No matter how much you spend on him/her, no matter what you aim to give, even if it is your life, the teenager will never be satisfied. Sometimes, you might feel that you are the object of his/her hatred, but rest assured that you are not. As a parent, as an elder or younger sibling, as a guardian, whoever you may be, the teenager may have problems with you.

I think that is the way they have been wired by God. That stage is definitely a possessive stage where demonic selfishness reigns. So don’t kill yourself for a teenager, let him grumble, let her throw tantrums, let him curse, let her threaten, they’ll grow out of it with time. If you nurse their teenage desires, they will grow spoilt eventually becoming social misfits. Ask me how I know at a tender age and I’ll tell you that three teenagers have successfully passed through my hands and two more are in the process. I’ve seen it all, have battled most of it, from horrible looking girlfriends/boyfriends, to stealing, to fighting, to joining bad companies, to drinking etc…

You don’t need to be alarmed when the bad signals begin, they’ll use it as an opportunity to do worse things to get to you when they realise that you are affected by what they do. Be indifferent most of the time, providing ears when they need it, giving love when you have to and leaving most of the decisions for them to make. Sometimes lay back and watch them make their mistakes, help them overcome their disappointments and you’ll be surprised how fast they’ll grow into matured beings.

                                                     Amoafowaa Sefa Cecilia.