Becoming an adult can sometimes be hard.
Walking down the aisle of a local store, it
was not difficult to hear some of the discussion taking place between a child
and his parent. The conversation was loud, with the mother’s final comment
challenging the youngster to act more like an adult. Really? Asking an 11- or
12-year-old to act like an adult? So as is often the case, it caused me to stop
and think.
Pulling out my trusty little cell phone, I
looked up the definition of the word ‘adult’ and I was a bit surprised to see
the number of different interpretations and meanings. But for the sake of this
discussion I will not be addressing the word in the context of “adult animals.”
Traditionally I think the word “adult” is
often viewed as someone growing up, from a child to a full-grown person, an
adult, in large part based upon physical size, the final step being to grow in
appropriate behavior, knowledge and learning.
From being a child to becoming an adult can offer
some interesting and unique experiences. Just thinking back over my from
transition I can remember some great times, but also some challenging times as
well, the biggest of times being when the expectation is to act mature, the
assumption being that adult mean being mature. Becoming an adult is more that
your body become full grown, what ever that may mean. It includes emotional
development, the ability to make sound and wise decisions and how you interact
with others and sometimes how you interact within yourself at times.
Someone suggested that you know you have
become an adult when you are able to choose the food you eat rather than being
told what to eat by your mother or grandmother. And you know you are one step closer
to becoming an adult when you move from the backseat of the family car to the
front seat.
Society, in all of its infinite wisdom, has
attempted the set the standards or point in time for entering adulthood, whether
it be reaching a certain age, like 18 or maybe 21 or by graduating from school.
Dropping out of school after the 8th grade no longer qualifies for
adulthood.
Becoming an adult may be result of the type
of job one olds or could even be determined by the amount of money one has in
the bank. These are the risk one runs by allowing society to determine what and
when the step from being a child into adulthood takes place.
Now, if this is sounding a bit sarcastic,
let me be honest here. It is intended to be. Reflecting back on the many decades
in my life, if I had known then what I know about adult behavior, I might have
given it a pass and stayed in the playground at school with my friends, a place
where we all got along, sharing our toys and sometimes our feeling. Yes. There
would be the occasional disagreement and argument. But we were able to find a
solution, even if it meant being sent to the principal’s office and get back to
enjoying the friendships.
But as an adult, the life we live in today is
no longer a playground. I don’t think it
was ever intended to be. Perhaps though its intend was to be a place where we
learned how to get along together, solve arguments and disagreements and learn
to get along and move forward. But all too often It has become a time of selfishness, dislike
and seeking revenge on those who we believe had ‘wronged ‘us.
Now, I will admit that there have been times
in my life when I have probably fallen into this lifestyle and behavior and
looking back I am sorry for that behavior and developing that attitude. So what
would a real adult do?
That may be a question for you to answer and
our answers may be quite different. We may even disagree. But the lesson I have
learned throughout my lifetime is that even though we may have different
beliefs and ideas, we can still learn to live and work together and in the
process become better at being an adult. And as a better adult we become better
role models for future generations.
As I went
through the checkout at the local store the mother and young boy who had been
arguing in the candy aisle pulled in line behind me, giving mom an extra minute
or two to race back to the candy display and pick up a bag of what appeared to
be her son’s favorite candy. And upon her return, he quietly responded with a
simple “thanks mom”. One step forward to being an adult? Could be!
