Teenage Life
How should I start? Should I say my name (it’s Heather, by the way)? Or maybe a nice opinionated paragraph would be sufficient paragraph would sufficient. I could tell you lots of things about myself, like that my favourite colour is green and I enjoy listening to music. But, at the end of the day, it’s not all about me. Teenage life means something to everyone, even (maybe even especially) to those who are not teenagers themselves. To be honest, there is no set way to label teenagers. We are all people with personalities and interests, and there are lots of little idiosyncrasies that set us apart. We all have small, interconnecting worlds that we live in. Some of us are scared of what the future will bring; others are more than ready, and perhaps even anticipating. If you ask me, I’m just your average, ordinary misfit who’s trying to stay alive in this crazy world we all live in.
I love my family. Really, I do. But coming home after a stressful day at school to a toddler, a disabled 7 year old with ADHD and a mother who is stressed out and has limited mobility and is what feels like constantly calling on me for help is not exactly my definition of peace. But I remind myself that I love them, and need to help them, and the selfish thoughts (almost) completely go away. In general, my home life is very happy. Sure, there are moments where everyone is in a bad mood because of my brother, but we stick together and stay strong. And although attention is constantly on my brother until he is asleep, the conversations I have with my mother are the kind that run all the way into the night. I love my family, every member of it.
When I was young, school used to be my favourite place. I had friends to hang around with, and had lots of fun. No pressure to be smart or dumb. No one cared. Now it’s different. If you say one thing with an ounce of intelligence behind it, you automatically become an alien species, also known as a ‘swot’. I myself don’t care if people find me worthy of an episode of Doctor Who, because staying true to myself means more than any amount of popularity. Regardless of my social status, I still enjoy school. I like most of my teachers and classes, and usually have fun.
Friends are important. Unfortunately for me, I have very few, and the one I do have don’t do half as much for as I do for them. Regardless, I can still have a laugh with them, and that’s got to count for something, right? Even though I give a lot to my friends that don’t get back (i.e. birthday presents), it’s better to have friends that in a way use me than to go back to having none at all.
Socialising isn’t really something I do that often. Going out rare. Attending school social events also rare. Going to parties, are you kidding! No-one invites me in the first place! As you can see I’m not exactly a popular social butterfly, but so what! I don’t need to be, do I? Besides, I don’t even like going out and partying anyway. I prefer to stay at home with a nice cup of coffee and a good book.
I don’t have many hobbies, to be honest. I HATE sports, so those are ruled out. And my artistic ability leaves something (a lot) to be desired, so no painting or sketching for me! I do enjoy reading and playing chess, but do these really count as hobbies? Things I’m interested in are ready things you do.
I’ve changed a lot since I came to high school, but it was a gradual change, and I actually didn’t realise how different I was until I sat and thought about it. I’ve matured a lot, and things have happened to change the way I perceive things like friendship, relationships and school.
The future is something I am not scared of. In fact I await it like night awaits day. Readily, and excited for its chance to shine. I am very ambitious, and have plans for what I want to do in the future. I want to go to university and study psychology and go on to become a clinical psychologist. I hope to settle down and have a family including three kids and a cat called Ginger, actually I think I’ll just stick to a nice, docile rabbit. This is what I plan to do, although if fate will follow this plan, I do not know I’ll keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best!
In my opinion, the media doesn’t portray teenagers, teenagers portray the media. They see things in magazines and music videos and on TV, and do them. Life for a normal teenager is really about trying to be what people within your group of friends or what teen magazines say you should be. And although society often regards teenagers as hooligans and vandals, the reputation is not always entirely undeserved, considering what peer pressure causes some teenagers to do.
Written by Heather, Young Carer, Aged 13
