Dear Fifteen
I'd like to say to you thanks for the good times we had
together, all the smiles and laughter we shared. I
remember being the most popular girl in school, my
grades were up to par, I was the teacher’s pet.
A lot of the females envied me and disliked me, they
always mistake my kindness for something else. I could
be a nice gentle person, and friendly when I had to
be. I did get into many fights, and protected a lot
of my friends. Mi vida loca, that’s
what we would say to each other.
I had a bond with all of my
friends, we were a family. I had friends that lived in
halfway houses and group homes. They had tragic stories
and came from nothing but yet they were still in school
every day they could attend. For some reason I befriended
girls that got picked on or talked about. I wasn't the
popular type that teased others concerning their appearance.
I thought it was wrong, and cruel, and I would stick up
for my friends any day.
You have
to look at people from a different perspective. They’re
acting the way they do for a reason, they are crying
out and being a drug addict, prostitute, or a dope dealer
is how they send out their message for help. The fifteen-year-olds
I knew blamed themselves, and always vented about their
parents not being available when they needed, or how they
weren't able to talk to their parents, cause they had no
relationship at all. Being fifteen and trying to live up
to the family values is challenging.
I prefer
to see fifteen-year-olds as children, cause that’s what they are. Us adults
and society is what makes them want to be adults. We portray
the world as fast, slick, and dishonest. Money this and
money that, sex, violence, drugs and alcohol. We provide
the cosmetics and provocative clothing. Why, at fifteen,
do you need a cell phone, or a car, or even a credit card?
Those are adult items, let your child be a child until
the right age. We as parents and adults are supposed to
be responsible mentors that our children will mimic. Just
think about it, they’re only fifteen, we’re
grown and have lived most of our lives.
I'm
twenty-four years of age, single with two children. My
life wasn't honey and rolls but I have a lot to show
for it now. I've opened up my home to a sibling family
of four, they've been with me and my family for two years
now. It's because of Jesus, I won’t give credit to no one else. He's my hero,
and that’s the God’s honest truth. My family
and I had to completely submit to our Lord and Savior.
Over
the years I have mentored musicians and dancers all over
the world. When you
receive what I did from my mentors as a teen, it’s
only natural that you pay it back to others. The
proverb is true, it does take a village to raise a child.
