Being A Teenager

Listening to the daily Lite Breakfast show with PK and Sarah (used to be Simon and Caroline) on Lite FM (104.6) is one of the highlights of my morning. I don't get to hear the whole talk show, just bits and pieces of it on my way to work. While the actual show stops at 10am, for me, it stops when I arrive at my office ....... and to be precise, at 8.52am.

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Today's talk show is on whether we'd gone through a difficult patch during our teenage years. Here are some answers I managed to catch just now:-

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Caller # 1 - Yes, I went through a difficult time. I was on the plump side and think that nobody, not even my parents, love me. I felt insecure and as a result, I was not sociable. I kept to myself. But when I was in my 20's, I built my self confidence and realised that I'm actually lovable.

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Caller # 2 - I rebelled a lot during my teenage years. I felt that my parents just didn't understand me. I just wanted my independance.

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There were a few others but I can't remember them. Anyway, for me, I would say that I enjoyed my teenage years. Why? Here's a number of reasons:-

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1. Getting involved with church activitives helped me gain confidence. I started song leading when I was 11 years old and was involved in a Children's Musical when I was 12. The following years saw me getting involved in more musicals and youth activities. I was a pretty confident person indeed. Church also means having more friends, mixing with both older and younger people.

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2. In school, I played volleyball and got into the school team when I was 14 years old. That boosted my confidence where sports is concerned. When I was in my fifth form, I was one of the three people who had to lead in the National Anthem, State Song and School Song. That meant standing in front of more than 1000 people - gulp! I always tremble when I had to speak in front of so many people. What was worse is the fact that I had to speak in Malay. Nevertheless, I managed to always sound calm up in front.

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3. I wouldn't say I was the most popular person in school but I certainly was quite well-known in school - NOT because I was naughty. Maybe it's because I am a twin and other people tend to gawk at my sister and I - even though we don't look alike. Those days, having twins in school is pretty rare.

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4. Boys! Ah! Well...... when I was 13 years old, this guy liked me. Only when I was 16 years old did he gather his guts to let me know his feelings. By then, several guys approached me but I was smart enough to say "no". I felt that I was not ready yet. I wanted my freedom.

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5. I guess being a twin helped a lot. I always had someone around and even though we fought a lot, we don't get angry with each other for long.

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6. I never had a curfew. My parents told us this once, that if we were going to be late, all we had to do is to call them and let them know 3 things - where we are, whom we are with and when we will be back. Most of the time, we were out with church members and I guess that made things easier for my parents.

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7. I was always the happy-go-lucky kind who'd never worry about what would happen the next day. I have the "do-now-and-think-about-it-later" attitude, which seemed to make my twin frustrated because she'd normally do the worrying for me :)

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8. I had pen-friends and the very fact that I was able to make friends easily from around the world made me realise that I'm a friendly person.

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9. God played a very important role in all my years of knowing Him. When everyone failed me, He was (still is) there for me. Whenever I lacked confidence, God reminded me that He is there to help me. That made a world of difference because if God's on my side, who can be against me?

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10. I have great parents who do not shout or degrade me. Whenever I made a mistake, we'd talk it through and see what could be done to rectify it. No harsh words were screamed at me nor was I abused in any other way.

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Well.... yeah, for these 10 facts, I must say that I look back at my teenage years with fondness. I wouldn't change a thing if I was given a chance to live it again. :)

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Having said all these, I think that at the end of the day, it's all up to you. What you want out of life and how you react to any situation, helps in forming your character and personality. If you can just get something positive out of a negative situation, believe me, you'll breeze through your teenage years... and of course, your working adult life, too. :)