So we are now hosting a foreign exchange student, we've had him since October 25th, and he comes from the land of teenagers. Seriously, people, this new thing called "teenager" is like having a foreign person in my home.
Now I've always felt fairly secure in my parenting skills, not always encouraged or perfect by any means, but at least feeling some semblance of control as a parent. This new phase has thrown every confidence I might have gained over the years, right out the window. All of a sudden my teen boy enters the house and in walk snarky attitudes, forgetfulness, moodiness, face book, girl craziness, and oh, did I mention moodiness?? I thought we'd at least ease into this stage, you know month by month I'd have the wherewithal to tackle these new attitudes one at a time...but it literally happened overnight. Bam. I have a teen.
Remember those book titles that you thought "someday" you would have to read? Those well meaning people who mentioned this book and that as being helpful....well now I'm scrambling around trying to find that long forgotten book list like a woman in the path of a hurricane!
I had one of those moments this morning, where everything I wanted to tell him all these years just died a slow death in my head--and I realized it's time to tackle this new stage head on. Because even though he is all of the aforementioned things (forgetful, moody, etc.) he is also still my sweet boy who is funny, smart, passionate, and dedicated to making a difference in the world. I realize it doesn't have to be a negative, uncertain time in my life, and even though we've never walked this path as parents, he's never been a teenager before either.
I want to embrace this phase because I choose to do so. I want to stay focused on helping my teenage boy make good choices. And most of all I want to encourage a rich relationship that will last until I'm gone. So while yes, he still seems foreign to me most days, it's not necessarily a bad thing. :)
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