Fifty percent of the time, it is the child’s fault. Fifty percent of the time, it’s yours. The people who criticize the younger generation have forgotten who’s raising it.
If parents understand exactly what it is teenagers go through, why is it that so many are running around pregnant, infected, and sexually active? People walk through valleys and conquer obstacles. Then they look back at the next person standing in line as if to say, “I did it, why can’t you?” Well, here’s the answer, the next person standing in line is living in a new era with new people and different circumstances. The valley will always be in the same place, but an aging society will continue to produce new baggage as time goes on.
It’s easy to become a “slut” if you don’t recognize its cause and reason. It’s easy to become a father at the stage of adolescence if the one you have isn’t with you mentally or physically, and it’s never hard to contract a sexually transmitted disease if you were never told how to avoid one in the first place.
Why are parents so afraid to talk about the facts of life? They’re quick to make assumptions and slow to find rational solutions. Coercing your child to stick to rules without reason or explanation will only encourage them to do the opposite of you say. Teenagers wind up in more trouble these days because they have parents who don’t understand the significance of balance. In order for a parent to keep control of their child, they must learn how to be a parent and a friend. Why? If you’re too friendly, your child won’t respect you. If your child can’t even respect you, what makes you think they’ll learn to respect others and if they can’t respect others, how on earth will they know how to respect themselves? When you continuously demand something of your child without some kind of explanation, he or she will rebel sooner or later. Rebellion is often derived from tension built within. Constantly hearing the word no without further explanation can really wear on a youngster. You’re saying: “Do this because I said so.” What you mean is: “I love you and I don’t want to see you hurt.” But all your teen hears is: “Who cares about your feelings? You’re not allowed to have any fun.” You make think this thought process is foolish and idiotic, but if you really understood what it was like to be in your child’s shoes in this time and era, the “stupid things” wouldn’t be so “stupid” anymore.
All I’m saying is, before you assume that your teen is simply a disrespectful heathen with a rebellious spirit, try to understand why he/she is acting a certain way. Getting to know your teen will automatically allow you to be completely aware of what’s going on in their life without having to snoop around. I’m not saying that that means you won’t ever have to “check up” on your teen without their knowledge every once in a while, but you’d be surprised at what a close relationship with your child will do.
It’s never too late to make things better. It’s never too late to make things right. Everyone wants somebody to care and it all starts with your child knowing that you as a parent, no matter how many times you have to say the word no, are truly on their side.
