Teenagers

In the history of mothers and daughters, mothers have felt they know what is best and daughters have felt that THEY know what is best. The difference is that mothers have been around longer and perhaps hold a wealth of knowledge and experience, but more importantly, they have an endless well of love and concern for their daughters, and sons.

Every teenager thinks they know everything. They think they know what is best, always. They think they make good choices and that the "bad" choices they make only have consequences if they get caught. What they seem to frequently forget is that their old, grey haired mother was once a teenage too. She made endless mistakes, went against her mother's advice plenty, suffered heartbreak and infinite amounts of unnecessary hurt. She tested the limits, tried things, ran from things, told small and big lies. She did it all too, and no, it wasn't yesterday, but it sure feels like yesterday.

I would give just about anything to have my Mom here with me to give advice to me. Good, bad, or otherwise- I would listen. I would cherish every word that came out of her mouth because I understand now just exactly how much she loved me and how good her intentions were. Always. A mother's love is like nothing else. It is all consuming and when your child hurts, you hurt too.

I am so grateful for my children and the relationships we have. They may feel deeply misunderstood at times, but I get it. I was once there too. One thing I know for sure is that they know I love them. Someday that might actually matter to them, but for now, I accept that I am not remotely cool. Their trends, use of the English language, decisions and priorities are their own and as much as I attempt to keep up, I fall short. I will never try to be something I am not and until they are much older, they won't be able to relate to the total freedom of just being yourself. Unapologetically. 

Teenagers are such a special kind of human. They want to do it all themselves, on their own terms, but they still want you to be there when they need you. They still want the benefits of just being a kid, while you trust them and treat them like the adults they aren't. It's not just hard on us parents. It's hard on them too. Infact, they think it's harder...just as we do. Such a strange time.

All we can hope is that they continue to know that we love them and that we all survive, fairly unscathed. We were there once too. I wish they would remember that.