Is being a Teenager Hard? By: Desiree Pratt

There is a famous saying when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. If only it was that easy. Nobody talks about the steps it takes to get to that delicious pitcher of lemonade. The squeezing of the lemons, the mixing, the measurements, it is a tedious task. This metaphor is as correct as it is wrong. Especially when looking at this metaphor where the lemons you are given (being a child) and the pitcher of lemonade being an adult. But what about the mixing? Being a teenager. Nothing is easy about being a teenager. With the world at your fingertips, and your childhood coming to an end, there’s a lot to juggle, a lot more to think about. With the pressures of society, it feels like the world is crashing down. Especially with the invention of technology, it has made matters worse. Social media is all around us, and influencers promote things that you would have never thought of, like body image and how you are supposed to present yourself. Berkely Rice a student at Hillgrove High School speaks on the matter, “It's very hard because you are constantly comparing yourself to everyone else.” Social media is a very toxic place and if you don't know how to manage it, it can consume you.  

Social media isn't all that there is. Adults only want to see teens succeed. But sometimes that pressure can get to be too much. Especially when you are a student athlete. Athletes must be able to balance their life perfectly, making sure they don't drop the ball literally and physically. Caroline Whittepsi a student at Hillgrove High School exclaimed, “Grades and standards and all the things that they expect from you can become really stressful when you're trying to keep up with a bunch of different things like school and sports and work.” Even though, more often than not, students have a choice whether they want to play a sport or not, some teens do not. Life can become stressful really fast.  

Nonetheless, teens are trying their best and if adults just take the time to think back to when they were a teen, life might just be easier for teens.