Teens

Love-Fear Relationship [Various Scripture; other topics - Communications; Parenting]

Colleen Reece, in Lutheran Witness, offers “Ten things your teen won’t tell you”:

1.) “Walk in my combat boots”: what seems easy to you is open warfare for me!
2.) “My holdout span is limited”: I’m not as strong as I look; please say no!
3.) “The world is strange, and I’m scared”: the headlines terrify me!
4.) “I can’t perform on demand”: I’m not a trained pet, I’m just a kid!
5.) “Don’t be embarrassed if I don’t respond the way you hope I will”: was it that long ago when you were a kid?
6.) “Please don’t compare me to others”: I’m stuck with you, so I guess you’re stuck with me!
7.) “I can’t like everything you think I should”: loosen the reins a little, okay?
8.) “Handle me with care”: don’t think you know everything.
9.) “Let me be my own age”: I only get to be a child once; get over it!
10.) “Role model Jesus for me”: how you demonstrate your faith means more than what you say about it!

Teens have never told their parents everything and they aren’t going to start now.

As one writer put it, “most parents are glad when they tell them anything.” Fear is a strong emotion and often disrupts communication between parents and children. The list above offers keen insight into the kinds of things young people struggle with in that no-man’s land of teen age life.

[Adapted from “Things teens struggle to communicate,” Current Thoughts & Trends, September 1999, 12]