Stepping Onto the Tightrope:
Leaving Childhood; Entering Adolescence (11-14)
Source: Google Images
Communal Prayer
O Lord, please guide us as we do Your Work. Teach, guide, mentor, support, discipline and love your children as they step onto the tightrope of Adolescence. Heal them of physical, emotion, spiritual and social pains. Give us, O Lord, the tools to help them feel less alone and abandoned on the road. No, we cannot understand exactly where they are and who they are becoming, but you can. Let them know that You understand, and You, the best advocate of all, are with them. We are their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, mentors and guides. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Ah Men!
Ouch! Puberty! Individuation Starts!
Puberty is difficult, and coming earlier and earlier. The start of puberty signifies the transition from childhood. A new independence is sensed, but the early adolescent is not equipped, nor fully willing to fully leave childhood all at once. Like a 3-5 year-old-old leaving toddler-hood, the early adolescent is often angry, demanding, illogical, unable to adequately express herself, and longing to test the boundaries. The Play-age?preschooler is learning to control her environment and push her bounderies, and so is the adolescent. Like preschoolers, they still need our love, support, discipline, forgiveness and unconditional love. Just as God loves us even when we are stubborn, impetuous, and unlovable, we are to keep listening, embracing, patiently waiting and gentling drawing to us our adolescents. They are creative, energetic, unique and resourceful. Let us not alienate them. Let us remember they are closer to children than adults. Let us remember not to treat early adolescents as if they are miniature adults. They are not!
Highlights of Early Adolescence
O Lord, please guide us as we do Your Work. Teach, guide, mentor, support, discipline and love your children as they step onto the tightrope of Adolescence. Heal them of physical, emotion, spiritual and social pains. Give us, O Lord, the tools to help them feel less alone and abandoned on the road. No, we cannot understand exactly where they are and who they are becoming, but you can. Let them know that You understand, and You, the best advocate of all, are with them. We are their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, mentors and guides. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Ah Men!
Ouch! Puberty! Individuation Starts!
Puberty is difficult, and coming earlier and earlier. The start of puberty signifies the transition from childhood. A new independence is sensed, but the early adolescent is not equipped, nor fully willing to fully leave childhood all at once. Like a 3-5 year-old-old leaving toddler-hood, the early adolescent is often angry, demanding, illogical, unable to adequately express herself, and longing to test the boundaries. The Play-age?preschooler is learning to control her environment and push her bounderies, and so is the adolescent. Like preschoolers, they still need our love, support, discipline, forgiveness and unconditional love. Just as God loves us even when we are stubborn, impetuous, and unlovable, we are to keep listening, embracing, patiently waiting and gentling drawing to us our adolescents. They are creative, energetic, unique and resourceful. Let us not alienate them. Let us remember they are closer to children than adults. Let us remember not to treat early adolescents as if they are miniature adults. They are not!
Highlights of Early Adolescence
- Early adolescents are stepping onto a "tightrope," learning how to find and hold their balance in a new world. Tightrope is a metaphor used to speak of the unstable emotional, physical, social and spiritual ground on which our adolescents walk, run, stumble as they move along the stages of adolescents and into adulthood.
- Early adolescents are concrete, not abstract thinkers.
- U.S. adolescents are 11 year olds, entering middle school.
- Early adolescents need us to help them understand the physical changes in their bodies, their raging hormones and their changing role in the family and even church.
- Adolescents often feel abandoned by family and community.
- Adolescents need mentors, role-models and adults willing to support, encourage and never judge them.
- It takes a village to raise the child. It take that same village to raise the adolescent.
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