Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Thirteen: Terrific or Torture?

"If you just watch a teenager, you see a lot of uncertainty.”
-----Jamie Lee Curtis

If today was your golden birthday, you’d be turning 13.

I don’t know that I’d rewind to being 13 even if someone offered me big bucks to do it. My strongest memory of being 13 is wishing to be someone else. I wanted to be the girl who had more friends. I wanted to be the girl with straighter hair. I wanted to be the girl with perfect skin. I wanted to be the girl with nicer clothes. I wanted to be anyone except myself. I remember feeling awkward and unsure and uncomfortable every single day.

Actually, I might go back to being 13 just so myself now could tell myself then to stop wishing to be someone else and start learning how to be yourself.

What are your memories of being 13? What advice would you offer your thirteen-year-old self?

8 comments:

Greta Adams said...

well 13 was when i went WILD...i stole my mom's car pushed it out the driveway, down the stop sign, jumped in and went joyriding at 2 in the morning...13 is also when i got my first "boyfriend"..bwhahahah looking back that is sooo funny....
BUT i was punished all the time for the stupid stuff and stunts i would pull..up until i was about 16 but i had fun and live to tell the stories...
YEAH YEAH...I WAS A BAAAAAAD girl

angieoh! said...

one of the strongest memories I have from being 13 is these cool jeans I had. They were light light denim with dark flowers stenciled in. I thought I was SO cool!

Barb said...

Oh Greta and Ang! You two are cracking me up!

Rebecca said...

You definately described me. Braces, curly hair, not tons of friends. Very awkward. What a tough age it was. I did have my first boyfriend and rocked the hypercolor shirts. ;)

Roni Hunt said...

Oh, I'd have to agree with Jamie Lee...uncertainty - am I pretty - am I fat - did I sound stupid to that boy. I was ready to take on the world and do it all, just didn't know how to get there! We had just moved from Brooklyn, NY to a small Florida town...culture shock. But I made friends and had a great time. And of course my parents NEVER understood me!! Turns out they were the smartest people on Earth!

Sherry said...

I would not want to return to 13. I was insecure, uncomfortable in my own skin, and spent most of the time embarassed about real or imagined things.

CoCo said...

Jeepers 13 was one of my best years I think. Had come from primary school where I was the only girl with boobs to a class with 70 girls of all different shapes and sizes. First boyfriend (still friends - he's getting married in August), first kiss - ok there were awkward times, but lots and lots of very good times. Didn't get braces till I was 14...life probably went downhill from 13 to 18 and then back up again. Must plot my memories on some sort of graph!

Beth said...

Advice to my 13 year old self? Don't sweat everything. You're not fat. Do things that make you happy not because you think they'll make someone else happy. Listen to your mother's gut reaction to the boys you date and don't settle for crumbs when you deserve the whole cake.

BTW,Barb, got my TT goodies - thanks much!! Love that journal!