Thinking Out Loud
"I KNOW!"

February 1, 2014
By: Diane Szczepanski

Why hasn't someone lassoed a few teenagers and had them sit down and write out all the supposed answers they have so we can solve the world's problems already?? ~ Richelle E. Goodrich

I'm one lucky Mom.

Why, you ask? Because my teenager knows everything. Really. If you want, you could give him a call if you're stumped on, well...anything. Because he knows it all.

Now, just how lucky am I to have given birth a mere 17 years ago to a child who would gain and surpass my knowledge about life in that short time span??

First, let me say I really do have a wonderful, smart, loving, compassionate and funny son. He makes me proud on a daily basis. He earns good grades, never gives me any trouble, has never missed curfew and aside from a bedroom he keeps in what I like to refer to as "Apocalyptic Chic", he's pretty low maintenance.

But, having a teen is not for the faint-hearted.

It's not for someone who wants their intelligence questioned on almost a daily basis. At the rate I am going, in my son's eyes, I will be lucky if I can still dress and feed myself in a few short years.

That I manage to go to work every day, make a pretty good living, stay active in the community and be involved in several creative projects isn't even on his radar.

I'm just the Mom who tells him to take out the garbage, hang up his clothes and nags him to be careful driving. All which trigger the reply, "I know!"

I recognize this is a phase.

I understand every parent with a teen is going through the same thing.

The experts say some day the tide will turn and he will finally see me as the competent, intelligent, wise woman that I believe I am...

I just hope it happens when I'm still young enough to do the end zone dance when he admits I was right.