Teenage Theater...
Dear Friends,
Yes, with all these snow days in Ohio, I just have one little word for all my friends out there in warmer climates…HELP!!! Now don’t get me wrong—I love spending quality time with my three darlings. But do I love it enough to be snowed in with them for days, no make that weeks…months even? I feel a little like Dorothy while I click my Isotoners…There’s no place like spring, there’s no place like spring.
Oh, I did see a Robin yesterday. The poor thing. It landed on a Maple dressed in a heavy coat of ice. I think its flight north was a tiny premature.
And along with it being the snowy time of year around our house, the dreaded season that everyone warned of, “Wait till their teenagers,” is finally here. Not only do we have A teenager in the house—we have two. A boy and a girl. And although they’re not twins, it seems as though their ages are melding together. Or is it that this mom is seeing double?
I'll admit some days it’s as if I’m standing in a 360 degree Amphitheatre, headphones and 3-D glasses firmly in place, while munching popcorn and waiting to see what happens next. It’s teenage theatre for goodness sake! Rest assured there isn’t one roll of the eyes I miss, or bad hair day that I don’t thoroughly acknowledge. It’s fine though. REALLY. I’m learning to cope.
Truthfully, it’s not THAT bad. I figured out that inevitably, the surge of hormones gets cancelled out by the drone of buzzing testosterone. While my daughter is fully engulfed in catalogs of prom dresses (she will go to her first prom this year), my son (being an avid hunter) flips through his deer and turkey magazines.She says red is the new black—he says the new turkey call is supposed to fool even the smartest of birds. Surround sound—I tell you.
And since they experience everything differently, I get to try to explain life from two different angles. Thank goodness my husband and I offer backup when needed. I’ve learned the fine art of, “Go ask your dad,” and he knows just the right moment to point our daughter in my direction. Usually when she’s shed some tears or has a few questions about boys. I mean, we have to battle this stage together, agreeing that no man is left behind!!!
Overall though, I love this period of parenting and find it refreshing. It’s a joy to see my children grow to become their own person, with individual interests and convictions. Our pastor, Dan Allan, once stated that the goal of parenting isn’t to raise good kids. Oh no, it goes much deeper than that because, you see, the world is full of “good kids.” No, the goal is to raise strong independent children who know the Lord and have a desire to serve Him.
Proverbs 22:6 encourages us to, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” Learning about God’s true character is great training for parent and child alike. The best news is it’s never too late to train. Even this old mom can learn new things when I read God’s word. There is also no doubt that with two teenagers, a ten year old, and one busy schedule, I could use a little help on figuring out the “way to go.”
But for now I must get going to the store because we are due for another snow storm. And I think I’m running low on popcorn. I’m guessing I might need that. Hmm, now where did I put my 3-D glasses?!?
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