Monday, May 30, 2011

Who are these teenagers? - Reflection


Everyone knows that the teenage years for a kid can be the most confusing time of his or her life, especially for girls. It’s that awkward time in your life where you are trying to figure out who you are and where you want to fit in the world. It’s making sure you’re living up to high standards set for you be the people before, while still being ‘perfect’ enough for the boys to notice you. I remember being a teenager and stressing not so much about school, but about what my peers would think. Making sure that I had the trendiest clothes and still focus on my looks, but without being an airhead.

Even though a teenager is a relatively new concept, the problems have always been there. It’s that time where puberty hits you and you don’t really know what to do with yourself.  Most adults pass your problems off as ‘stupid problem’.  However, the problems I had when I was a teenager were the worst things to ever happen to me. I didn’t know about the world around me, nor did I care.  My biggest problem was all the changes happening in such a short amount of time to the boy I had a crush on, nothing more. Once I got through them, I loved being a teenager. I was able to experiment with different clothes and meet new people. However, while being a teenager, you are still being judged. I remember being seventeen years old and wanting my nose pierced, but my parents told me no. They said that people were going to judge me unfairly. I finally told them that I didn’t’ care and once I turn eighteen years old; I’m going do this. They finally caved in and brought me to get it done.

I’m now twenty-one years old and I look back on my teenage years and I truly miss it. It seems like such a simpler time for me, even with the drama. With everything I’ve been through as well as everyone else, I think teenagers rely heavily on their friends. I couldn’t imagine going through some of the things I went through without my friends.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Unlearning the Myths that Bind Us


April 29, 2011 Prince William Author Philip marries Catherine (Kate) Elizabeth Middleton in what some call the “Wedding of the Century.” Every girl in the world has been hanging onto this event since news of the engagement broke out. Reason being; it is a real life fairy tale come true for one lucky girl. While watching the wedding take place I could not help but think of Cinderella, from the dress to the royal family and everything in between. Looking at Kate walk down the aisle I thought to myself, “she must be the luckiest girl in the world.” This truly is a Cinderella story come to life. However, I could not help but think that the chances for another commoner to marry into a royal family are so slim, almost barely there. Cinderella met her Prince and fell in love within a few months. Prince William and Kate took almost ten years of dating and getting to know each other before finally tying the knot.

The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella all thin beautiful girls with money and an ideal man to match. Walt Disney has portrayed this image that this is what happiness is and that if you do not look like one the girls or have money or a perfect man, then you are not ever going to be truly happy. So as a teenage girl going through lives changes you start to feel very insecure. You have to try and figure out who you want to be, while still having good looks and the brains.

As far as teenagers, they are considered to have everything and nothing all at once. They are expected to be smart and have a good head on their shoulders. Knowing right from wrong, while still maintaining their innocence. The level of expectation for kids during this awkward time in their life is almost to unattainable. All girls want to be Cinderella, but the truth is, majority of girls don’t fit the criteria. Girls also have to be pretty while still being a virgin until she gets married. As for boys, they have to be strong and respectful, but still have good looks. Teenagers have to find themselves, and adults have to give them the space they need without putting kids into a standard set too high for them to reach.