Give Your Parents a Chance to Catch up
Updated: Apr 8, 2022
OK this one is for my teenage friends.
I know that you have been you. That seems like a weird statement, but just stick with me here.
You made the transition from being little and thinking your parents were the coolest people on the planet. All you wanted to do was hang out with them. You couldn’t wait to get in the car at the end of the day and tell them every detail of your day…..right down to the colour of your best friend Bobby’s socks.
Then that same you started thinking “maybe I am not going to tell my parents everything. Maybe I’m not going to ask them for advice and I am going to try to figure a few things out for myself. Maybe talking to my friends is a way to figure it out.”
I get it you are the same you, just an older you, because you took that journey inside yourself. From the outside though, your parents see one day you want to tell them everything, share everything, and ask for advice, and the next day you don’t wanna have anything to do with them. It feels to them like you’re being secretive and you’re hiding things.
You don’t feel like you are hiding things! You are just not quite ready to share yet. That’s totally legit.
The thing is, they are not used to you yet. To them, you suddenly changed into someone they don’t quite recognize and they need a little time to adjust.
They desperately want to know you. That’s why they ask you 500 annoying questions.
I need you to do me a favour friends.
First, just understand that you are a brand new human to them. Suddenly you’ve changed and they don’t understand who you are yet.
Second, try explaining that “I don’t wanna talk about this right now. I need to think about it. I wanna write in my journal about it. I just need some time, and then I’ll talk to you about what’s going on.”
Third, don’t hold everything against them. They just want to know and love you. Give them some time to get to know you. Help them get to know the person you want to come to. They might be more helpful than you think. They have been there too!
