I have a moody teenager on my hands. I am trying to figure out how to motivate him. I am not doing so well. So I decided to try and remember what it was like when I was 17.
There aren't too many parallels. I was a chubby girl who wasn't into any particular clique. I had a few friends, but I wasn't terribly social.
I turned 17 the summer between my junior and senior years of high school. So I was further along in school at age 17, simply because of my birthday and not being adopted like he was. I was always among the younger kids in my grade.
Michael will be 19 when he graduates. I can't do anything about that.
However, although I was young, I was just as anxious to be done with high school. I remember being deeply bored and/or irritated by a lot of the behavior in high school, the immaturity of many of my peers. My school, Farragut, was a huge school, and it was easy to get lost in the crowd.
I didn't fit in anywhere. I wasn't a jock or a cheerleader, or a nerd, or a smoker. I didn't care about football or go to the games. I think I went to maybe 2 games the entire 4 years?!
I wasn't into Young Life, the evangelical christian organization that a lot of my peers were into. I am Episcopalian. We don't evangelize that way; we encourage people to talk about their journey, or not. I was active in my tiny church youth group, but we didn't do a whole lot.
I also wasn't a nerd. I never touched a computer until I was in my late 20's. I was smart, but not nerdy. Not into Science and Math.
I wasn't a smoker or a "bad" kid. I didn't smoke cigarettes or pot or drink. I didn't pull pranks.
I was a Drama kid. Loved working on plays. Also sang in the chorus and worked on the newspaper. Those were my main activities.
I wish that Michael could find a peer group in an outside activity that he likes. He decided not to do the tennis team this year. It wasn't much fun for him last year.
I was a shy teenager, but I could be more open when I was in a small group of kids; my busy schedule saved me from being bored too much.
I look back and of course wish I had studied harder, but so be it. I could do 90% of my homework on the bus.
The hardest part of convincing Michael to stay in school is trying to get him to understand the concept of deferred gratification. Study hard now, and in college, and then get a job you don't hate where you can support yourself. Look years and years down the road. Hard for him to do.
I can remember having a basic faith in my parents' wisdom and knowledge, even though I didn't always agree with them. They said college was the thing to do, so I aimed to do it. My mom always talked about college being fun, despite the fact she had to work her way through.
My dad didn't talk about his college days much, but he had a great regard for education. He also had to work hard and put himself through. I was taught to be grateful to have parents who were happy and willing to pay my tuition.
I loved college. It was SO MUCH more fun than high school - than anything, up to that time. I wish I could get him to understand the concept of how different college will be.
Michael is getting ready to take his lifegaurd certification course in a few weeks, so he can be a lifegaurd at the pool this summer. He is small but VERY strong and athletic. I know it will be good for him.
We went to Walmart yesterday and I bought a 20 lb. bag of potting soil, so I can start my garden seeds. Michael hefted the bag like it weighed nothing. With one arm.
What I most recall about being 17 is wishing I could skip school and just get life started. Just go ahead and grow up. Get away from mom and dad and do what I wanted.
Then suddenly, one day I was 22 and I had my own apartment and my first real job and I was BORED SENSELESS...
My prayer for Michael is that he not be restless and bored, and that he find his future occupation with a minimum of anguish. And of course, I want him to be happy..
Lola loves Nutella... LOL
