Teen Angst

Recently I’ve been reading a blog of a remarkably articulate and well written 15 year old. In the most recent days he’s written about the current high school drama going on. It brought back memories of my high school days, I’m sure it would bring back memories for everyone; I think everyone had basically the same experiences in school. The drama that is going on is that one particular boy is being singled out and made fun of by some other students. The particulars of the situation don’t really matter; this is a story that has been done a million times over at every high school – well school for that matter, not just high school. Everyone has this memory. Everyone has gone through this, just taking part in different roles– as the person being ostracized, a friend of that person, the person doing the ostracizing or a friend of that person. I’ve been all of them at different times, I’m sure most people have as well. It struck me as funny, sad and ironic to read all the drama of the situation. I went to the different blogs out of curiosity to know why this boy was being singled out. No special reason really, just the usual, his personality chaps someone else. It’s funny how self absorbed teenagers are. I know they are supposed to be, so I completely excuse every one of them for it. What is different is how the internet has changed this. When I was in high school in the late 80’s we had to gossip to each other and write scathing notes, maybe even resort to graffiti to sully someone else’s image. Now teens have blogs and web pages, where they can devote pages upon pages to defaming the particular object of their ire. It’s mind boggling. I have no idea who or where any of these teens are but I know who hates who and why! I mean really! And apparently they have web rings and all so people from the school (not just close friends of the people involved in the incident) can read all about it and comment on whose side they are on – hell I could even comment on it if I cared to! Wow – talk about taking school yard spats to a new level! I can not even imagine how out of control my little pathetic life would have been back in high school with a blog where I was pouring out all my deep dark feelings and insecurities for everyone to read and comment on as they pleased. I think some things are just better left locked in diaries stashed under one’s bed.

The situation mentioned above struck me as ironic in timing since I had just had lunch with my Former Arch Nemesis. In high school we didn’t get along for any other reason than we were vying for attention from the same people. We were both extremely insecure (as all high school kids are), self absorbed (again a teen age trait) and short sighted. There was never an incident that happened, never a word that was said, just didn’t like each other so we sniped about each other behind backs. I honestly never said all that much, I spent as little time with her as I could so I didn’t really have much dirt on her – besides, I was particularly self absorbed at that time and spent most of my time discussing my current boyfriends or most recent drunken party. I can’t speak for her, I only know of one incident that happened where my best friend took up for me. No one ever told me what was said just that Mary had gotten in my Nemesis’s face and everyone thought things would come to punches. We had 4 years of disliking each other without real justification. Then last week we spent 3 hours talking and laughing. I discovered that we were quite alike in high school and still are now. She’s grown a lot as a person and I’d like to think I have also. In the time we spent talking it never came up as to what had ever happened. It really didn’t matter. Not now that I’m 32 and have two lovely children. I’m so far from high school it’s just a funny memory of fashion disasters and bad hair. I wish I could impart that to the teens mentioned above – not to take all this so seriously, it’s not a mater of life and death, and once high school is over… well all this is over too, stop wasting time on hating and fighting, savor the sweet special moments of growing up.

Ok that’s it… enough sappy crap, back to ME!