My Parents Don't Understand Me...

Almost a year ago, I wrote on this, and half a year later an update...

My parents don't understand me... the journey of the recent years has been humbling but also a lesson into faith, hope and love. Faith that compels us to remain fast and firm, hope that things will change for the better and love to be long suffering. Am reminded of 1 Corinthians 13:13.

As the marginal man loses his marginality, light too dawns on him. And less and less he feels that we don't understand him. His own journey of being challenged in his own faith I hope is also preparing him to for the responsibilities of adulthood, but the remnants of the marginal man still rears his head though at a lesser frequency.

We've argued and fought and there were many unpleasant moments... there will continue to be some more of those I know but generally we seem to understand each other better. His SUSOM experience seemed to have helped him see things in a different light... his journey into his faith to search himself and allow God to work His ways. We are actually beginning to find his company quite pleasant more often. 8) Good influence, role models from the SU staffers; thank God for such people with a passion to shape and challenge the young people.

It's always hard to make a kid see that we love them, especially when we seem not to allow them to do the things that they want. Discipline is painful, on both parties I've learned. You can't really discipline without feeling the pain yourself. But it is necessary. Pain makes you feel the anguish often times... that's the perspective which I think our kids don't see very often.

My parents don't understand me... it seems to be coming to a close with one kid. Irrational arguments have become more rational... not all the time but there are more of it now. Marginalism is slowly being replaced by a new and hopefully surer identity of self and also of discipline.... In the last one and a half year, I'd say there's been more storms than the first 15 put together. But the metamorphosis is still ongoing...the butterfly not quite emerged yet... so, my parents don't understand me.... they don't call it growing pains for nothing. 8)

Oh yes! Read this study done on mice on what might also be effects of puberty on the adolescence.... LOL! Puberty does make us slightly more stupid it seems. And if you want your kids to do well, it seems also that you better make sure they learn as much as possible during the pre-puberty period. Else once puberty hits, they become 'dungu'-fied by the emo onslaught, amplified by the trimming of the excesses of the brain.. normalcy will only set in post-puberty. It's beginning to make sense, the craziness I see everyday at work, my teenage students...