I recently cleaned out the closet in our guest bedroom. And, believe me, it was easier said than
done. Somewhere in the past three years,
this humble block of space had become the home for all things that don’t “have
a place”. You know what I’m talking about – not sure
where something really belongs? – let’s throw it in that closet, and I’ll find
a “real” place for it later. Only, later never really comes and the closet
begins to resemble something from that hoarding show… until you finally decide
something has to be done.
Anyway, as I began to organize the small space (aka: pull it
all out of the closet and dump it on the guest room floor and bed) I quickly
realized everything fit into one of three categories:
1.
Stuff I Forgot We Owned But Nice to Have: extra hangers, photos from my daughter’s early
days, stationery, sharpies galore, high school scrapbooks for me and Daniel
(because who wouldn’t want to see those glory days?!), and some Texas Rangers
cups (from the years they were actually winning games and going to the World
Series).
2.
Stuff I Knew We Owned But Don’t Use Often: my maternity clothes, shower supplies (I’ve
got enough linen, mason jars, & lace ribbon to knock the “shabby chic” look
out of the park) Daniel’s suits, gift wrap stuff (no matter how much of it I
own, I still never seem to have the appropriate sized/themed bag I’m looking
for), craft supplies (I think I used to be “crafty” and utilize all of these cool
paints, papers, and pens), & books (from my pre-Kindle days, obviously).
3.
Stuff I Forgot We Owned And Need to Find a New
Home For: picture frames I used in
college (with the pictures still in them – reminding me that I haven’t always
had dark circles under my eyes), the old car radio Daniel replaced in his truck
last year (really??), and a box of notes and cards from my high school and
college years.
That’s right - a box of notes and cards from my high school
and college years. I didn’t even know
this box existed, and it was only a matter of time before my productive day of
organizing the closet turned into a trip down memory lane.
I found old pictures, funny notes from friends,
inspirational quotes from camps I had been involved with, and even letters from
old boyfriends. That’s right. In this unmarked box of my past, I found
letters I had kept from old boyfriends. Don’t
ask me why - - I didn’t even know they existed.
However, I would be lying if I said I didn’t read them, and I’d be lying
if I didn’t say they had me laughing hysterically – the immaturity of my past
relationships glared at me in the face as I read each card and letter. Some were too corny or cheesy to even
finish. It seemed like light years ago
when I had received these, and I couldn’t believe they had stayed in my
possession all of this time. I read
through them all, laughed a bit, rolled my eyes a few times then threw them all
in the trash. I mean, seriously – as
comical as they may have been, there’s really no other place for them except
the local landfill.
As I began to toss each into the trash pile, I started
thinking about teenagers today. There
won’t come a day when they peruse their old high school memorabilia and find
written notes. No, they would probably
scoff at such an ancient method of communication, but what are they going to do one day?
Pull down their electronic “cloud” from the sky and empty it of
everything they’ve ever sent or received?
Is that even possible? Does
anyone even know what the “cloud” really is?
Will they spend hours deleting every text message conversation ever
had? And, even if they do all of that –
will there digital conversations ever really be erased from social media
history?
Talk about a different time, huh? I used to pass notes in between classes and
pray a teacher wouldn’t catch me as we read it during my next class. I’d sign notes to my friends with the beloved
acronym of “LYLAS” and doodle the border of the notebook paper like my life
depended on it. Then, if I had something
to say to my friend that didn’t make it onto a note for that day, I’d have to
WAIT until we were both home (and finished with dinner, of course) before I
could call them on their land line (gasp).
Or, if you could stay up late enough to get the green light from your
parents to use the phone line for Internet, and you had the patience for a
shaky dial-up connection, you could chat with them on AOL Instant
Messenger. (Shout out to my old screen
name of DMSsport30, where I paid tribute to not only my middle school, but also
my volleyball and basketball number…for some things, there are no words.)
Your average teenage issues - relationships, friends, peer
pressure, gossip, and rumors - carry such a larger weight today than they ever
have before because now they NEVER SHUT DOWN.
Fifteen years ago, if someone broke up with you, you’d call your friends
to talk (cry) about it, maybe tell your mom, and slowly hear the news spread
around the school the next day. It
still, unnecessarily so, became everyone’s business, but its only means of travel
was word of mouth. Now, it’s possible
that if your boyfriend breaks up with you, you’re
the last one to find out about it. And,
that’s a piece of humble pie no one should ever have to taste.
You hear it all over the place: this generation is too “self
centered”, they “don’t know how to have a meaningful conversation”, they don’t
know how to “detach from their social devices”, and so on… Sure, some of these
accusations may be true, but I know several adults who could be categorized
under those stereotypes, as well. I
think we need to stop attacking this generation for their constant dependence
on social media and start recognizing the challenges it causes them:
Not many of us can say our middle school boyfriend broke up
with us via a Facebook wall post or tweet.
It’s not just the fashion magazines in the check out line
with pages of beautiful women that can allow insecurity to start creeping in – confidence
is tested with every pop up ad, retweet, Instagram post, or snapchat message.
Keeping up with the Joneses isn’t just about getting a fancy
car when you turn 16 or those pair of jeans you want – now, it’s about who looks to be having the most fun on their
status update or racking in the most likes on a recent post.
Maybe “kids today” don’t know how to spell correctly, use
proper grammar, or have legible handwriting, but they have a whole slew of
battles to fight that us older folks would crumble against. So, instead of criticizing, let’s start
encouraging… instead of feeling sorry for, let’s start praying for... instead of griping about, let’s learn about…
Because at the end of the day, they’re still just kids. They deserve to be twelve, fifteen, eighteen,
etc… They deserve to make mistakes and
learn from them. They deserve our
support and interest. They’re the next
generation. The hope for a better
tomorrow. The teachers to my kids. The
future.
And, if you don’t believe it, just see what they do when….
They’re given the opportunity to serve: they give and love unconditionally.
They’re told to have fun:
they unashamedly learn how to country dance.
They’re given freedom to be themselves: they’re at their happiest.
Because whether they talk to their friends in person,
through a note, or on text message, teenagers today are the same as they were
ten, twenty, thirty, even fifty years ago: young, impressionable and passionate
people seeking out truth in this ever-evolving, complicated and beautiful
world.
Therefore, my prayer is that I’m always pointing them to the
Truth…even if it is through a text message. :)
