But first I am a mom. Being a mom is an exceptional, yet common job! It is a blessing, and usually a joy! And sometimes it is a....curse! Maybe I am being a bit of a drama queen,but the last few days at home with teenagers....Arghhhh. I am frustrated, hurt, annoyed, and disgusted. With myself. With them. With life.
My teens have not done any one thing that would make me run this gamut of emotions. The have aroused this motherly reaction by the mere rolling of eyes, blank stares, and general lack of cooperation. At the best I am exhausted. At the worst, I would like to slay someone...maybe with words, maybe not.
Bob and I have put a great deal of genuinely dedicated effort into our child rearing. We worked opposite shifts, we disciplined fairly, we taxied them around, and we had fun with each of our kiddos. I am sure that this same story has been shared by many. We are not alone in our endeavor. I see it all around me...In my neighborhood, at our school, in our church home. I see parents who care, who work hard, who would give anything for their children to have a good life!
There are days with teenagers when I wonder what we have done wrong. I never thought MY kids would grow into these creatures called teenagers. I never thought I would be an exasperated parent. But then I take a deep breath and roll MY eyes! It occurs to me that this is the nature of the beast!
Teenagers are meant to be a bit rebellious. They are meant to detach a bit. They are designed to question "authority". This is their job, and might I say that they are doing it well! My job? To keep on doing what I do best...discipline with endurance and commitment, reinforce good behavior, and basically love my teens with all my heart. I take comfort in the "normalness" of these life changes...
This whole parent/teen relationship makes me think of my behavior toward my Savior. It gives me insight into how my Creator feels when I don't acknowledge his wisdom, strength and grace or when I roll my eyes at his discipline. He is disappointed in me, but still goes right ahead and dies for my sins. Unbelievable? Yes! True? Yes!
I guess I will take a hint and go give my kids a smile and a hug. It is the least I can do....I am blessed with happy, healthy teenagers. Even with all the raging hormones (theirs AND mine) I am pretty sure we will remain a family intact!
Proverbs 17:6
Children's children are a crown to the aged,
and parents are the pride of their children.
Proverbs 2:1-6<
My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding,
and if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
then you will understand the fear of the LORD
and find the knowledge of God.
For the LORD gives wisdom,
and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
because the LORD disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.
The young always have the same problem - how to rebel and conform at the same time. They have now solved this by defying their parents and copying one another. ~Quentin Crisp
Little children, headache; big children, heartache. ~Italian Proverb
Heredity is what sets the parents of a teenager wondering about each other. ~Laurence J. Peter
Don't laugh at a youth for his affectations; he is only trying on one face after another to find a face of his own. ~Logan Pearsall Smith, "Age and Death," Afterthoughts, 1931
