Other than a skateboard company, the word peaks my interest. This past weekend I had the house to myself because the parentals were in Vegas, I am the 3rd and final Pilon kid to be in the process of becoming independent. So of course like every good college guy does with a house to himself, I massive kegger and drank loads of alcohol and all kinds of people came over and it as a wild weekend of debauchery.
Not.
But I enjoyed having the place to myself, and I did have some friends over on Saturday night. (thanks for coming yall) Anyway, last night I spent some time with a couple of my friends as well. We went to compline at St. Mark's Cathedral, picked ups some food at Dick's Drive In and ended the night with some great conversation at Kerry Park up on Queen Anne. It was really great to just sit and talk.
Until...
Well let me give some background. One of the two friends I was with, whom we will call Bob for anonymous' sake, has been independently out of the country for the better part of the past year. They are now back and living with their parents. This is where the "Until" comes in. Me and my 2 friends were sitting on the ledge at Kerry park, enjoying the view, having some good conversation, and Bob's phone rings. Said phone was answered with a very unhappy parent on the other end because Bob had missed curfew. What I did not understand was the fact that Bob never had a curfew before, but ever since he has been living with his parents again he now has a curfew, and Bob is 19 years old.
I think independence is a hard thing for parents. It is just naturally built into parents to want to help their children and once their children grow up into responsible independent adults, it can seem so foreign for parent to not have to help their child nearly as much anymore. And this becomes the tricky balance of becoming independent. Does my 19 year old need a curfew, or can I trust them to be old enough know what their limits are and that the can take care of themself? I suppose the answer is going to depend on the person and the circumstances.
2 comments:
I love your thoughts on independence. This is certainly an age old frustration for young adults. I think it is frustrating for parents to because what "used to work" is not "working" anymore. Moving back in with the folks is often a tricky deal. Most parents revert back to pre-excursion (college, travel, etc.) rules of engagement. It is like someone returns from 6 months with YWAM and the parents and sometimes friends for that matter treat the person as if they had never left. Sometimes that can be good, and sometimes that is frustrating for the person who had 6 months of experience with no one back home who understands. How are you doing with your time abroad and the "re-entry?" Let's get together soon to chat about it.
sorry Joel...thought that my name would be attached to that previous comment.
-Chris
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