Come on and grab a bit of food, we've got some left over pizza, and some tasty Royal Gala apples. I sure do love the taste of those apples. I thought I might pontificate a bit on the nature of teenagers and my experience with my Little Bear.
I love my Little Bear. She's one talented girl, very caring and wonderful. She's funny, charming, beautiful. I don't doubt that I couldn't have gotten any luckier than I have to be able to raise such a fine young lady. Of course, the Little Crow is turning into another pure miracle, so maybe I'm doing something right. Probably just finding the right chick to knock up. Ha ha.
And that's why these teenage years or so frustrating. Because on one hand I totally understand the reasons for what she's doing, why she's acting the way she is, and why it is necessary. Doesn't make it any easier to deal with the emotional aspect. In fact it almost makes it worse.
I understand that she is testing the limits of who she is and what she wants to be. I know that she is attempting to redefine herself amongst her world, her peer group, herself. She is taking those first steps to be a lone individual who will stand on her own. And I like that, I want her to learn all the things she needs to so she can be that incredible woman I know she will be.
The flip side of that is the petulance. The distrust. The view that somehow, by my mere existence, I am somehow holding her back, or unfairly restricting her ability to be who she is. Which is kinda funny since I don't put those kind of restrictions on her. In fact, she's rather free to do what she wants, as long as she fulfills her obligations. I advise, but I don't lay out what she can and can't do, she has the freedom to do her chores in a fashion she feels is best, so on and so forth.
And for the most part, she's actually pretty good at making those decisions. I'm very proud of her and she knows it. But let me be honest here folks. There are times when I've got the most delicious desire to club her like a baby seal. I tell you there is this pose she strikes, and this look in her eyes she gets, when I ask a rather benign question like 'So what was with that status update?' or 'What are you and your twinaroo doing tonight?' And it's like a switch, POW, she's off into justification mode. So I calmly listen to her berate me about what is 'really' going on and how I don't understand, and then I nod and explain, 'Just curious, I'm not saying you were wrong, just wanting to know what's going on.' And rather than a, 'sorry for flying off the handle,' I get, 'Yeah well...'
Lotsa fun with a teenager. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a lament, I'm not troubled by this. Well that's not entirely true. My kidlet can be a little hurtful in the way she treats good old dad, but the fact is I'm proud of her and her Independence because that's the kind of daughter I was hoping to raise. A strong, capable person, who is comfortable taking care of herself. It's kinda cool.
'Course, I still get the urge to kick her ass so hard she poops shoe leather for a week.
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