Youth is an exciting and stressful stage in one’s life, a stage where one is moving from childhood to
adulthood so it is this period in between. This stage is called adolescence. There are a lot of changes
that will be happening physically and emotionally within our youth’s bodies. Many developments and
transitions from childhood to adolescence create a chain of mood-swings within them because the
experiences and hormonal changes are a new thing to their anatomy.
This stage is both exciting and stressful to both sexes in that they are all trying to adjust to a lot of
issues surrounding them, battling with pimples on the face to their newly hairy skin. Many succumb to
peer pressure as well as wild behaviour during this period because something within them tells them
that they are not children anymore. Most of them think at this stage they are now old enough to make
their own decisions and don’t need to be told what to do by anyone. This behaviour is predominant in
male children because of the secretion of the testosterone hormone.
Adolescence stage is to some extent very dangerous because it is at this stage that t we can either
loose or win a person the youth. During this stage some children contract STIs even HIV diseases
through experimenting in this new world, some children get unwanted pregnancies, start on drugs,
and some are just rude whilst some do all sorts of nasty things. Most of the drug addicts we have in
society if we are to ask them they will tell you it all started at their youth stage and up to now they
struggle with a habit they picked up growing up.
The youth stage is a foundation to one’s life. Be it academic destiny, sporting disciplines, and potential
in various acumen is usually identified during this stage. It is a defining stage of life so to say. Many
destinies that be today, whether of noble men and women and those who are ordinary in society have
been designed during such a stage. It is a launching pad of either greatness or doom. The choices
that affect people years to come on their lives have been made while they were youths. The way they
chose to study their academics, the times they chose to train in their sporting discipline, the amount of
practice invested in one's art as draughtsman et cetera now determines who they have become. The
Lionel Messi and the Neil Armstrong are present in every generation but what determines how far
their impact go is the chain of choices, decisions and habits they made and developed at a certain
early stage in life. Most children are born with gifts but the prince of this world, the devil, cunningly
deceives them to pick up the wrong things that quench their light and gifts during the adolescent
stage. It’s either a very promising youth athlete would be made to pick up marijuana and become an
addict until they amount to a beggar on the streets.
Many pressures mount on our children during this stage and therefore it is paramount that parents
take up their role seriously and religiously to monitor their kids and walk them through these alien
stages of growing up into the wilderness of adulthood. Parents need to talk more with their children
and educate them on the changes they are about to experience when they are about to enter this
period of adolescence. Parents should be there for them all the time and all the way as well as
understand them because they have been there before.
Educating this group is crucial before it is too late. It is a delicate stage. No one is prepared to loose
their child at this stage and it is so painful for parents to loose their children. When education comes
to your child after they have experienced the wrong side of life and they are already convinced that is
the way then your word and correctional attempt will have no place or effect on them ; rather it will
create conflict and widen the rift between you and them. If told before when it starts to happen they
will realize this is what my Mom, Dad, Sister or Aunty was talking about so let me choose to go the
prescribed way.
It is important to train our youth first and foremost on the basics of life. They have to know that too
much of everything is no good. They have to master themselves and take control of their emotions,
feelings and behavior.
We have one youth who used to have an affair with a maid. As time went on, there started to be some
abnormal physical changes on the maid and her belly began bulging out: guess what; it was
pregnancy. The maid was pregnant and this eventually will lead to a new life coming on earth without
proper parental structures in place. The boy’s parents chased away the maid but that won't solve
anything yes you have chased away the maid but not the pregnancy. This child will always be there
and be part of the boy’s life and their life no matter how he resists or they resist, that is the truth.
We should join hands and make our children know that in life, what matters most are the choices they
make on a daily basis. Where they go, who they go with, what they do, why they chose to do that with
et cetera. They need to be taught that life is determined by their actions and decisions; what they will
call results are only consequences of their actions and decisions. Youth is the springboard of success
or failure in life therefore it has to be an esteemed phase of parenthood. Our youth are our tomorrow,
let us lead them on the way to prosperity by providing proper guidance as adults, guardians and
parents!
Quote of the Week: Adolescence stage is a launching pad of either greatness or doom
