Hey K2 Kanakuk Friends,
Goodness, I love when I start a "series" and really it just lives on the world wide web as a serie. No "s." Well, boom...this just became a series..."What I wish I could tell my teenage self about...______"
The first addition was on FAMILY. You can read it
HERE . I thought for the second addition we would jump into the topic that will bring inward squeals (because no way do you outwardly act like boys are a biggie...totally cool) and crazy eyes (eyes that all teenage girls have and make their parents roll their eyes and cry into their daughter's old dolls longing for the days of yore with pigtails and poopy diapers...yes, they would probably pick the poopy diapers) --- That was a long statement for parentheses. (I just googled "parenthesis" plural as who knew how to spell that).
Okay, so drumroll for the Top 5 Things I Wish I could Tell My Teenage Self about BOYS.
1. They smell. (deep, I know). Sometimes they smell good since they have all fallen prey to those ridiculous AXE commercials. This smell with burn the hair all the way up your nostrils b/c it is so oddly strong, bad strong, not like oh, big muscles strong. Also, after their athletic endeavors or for some who sweat easily just being called on in class, their body odor is, well, like that of their lineage. Poor Adam...no deodarant back then. (Oops, but the garden was perfect so maybe Adam didn't have BO).
2. Boys want you to be a good friend. Oh, the drama. I love the girls in the summer who say these words to me. "I hate drama" and then they continue to talk through with me their life and it's like a scene blitz of every CW show and vampire movie without the vampire teeth. Seriously. Guys that are great guys want just good friends. I am not speaking to the age 'ole question of "Can a girl and a guy be best friends?" (Oh, that's a whole nother blog...is "nother" a word...it was to my mamma). I look back to leadership teams (I didn't really have friends in high school...Looo-ser! I know. Or college really but at K2 on staff...there I found great friends...guys and gals. Deep memories!) and I realize I had sweet guy friends...true brothers in Christ. Oh, so sweet! It was pure and clean and safe. The operative word to this item is FRIEND. Be a sweet, kind and true friend.
3. Boys have no "cycle" but just as many hormonal or "cray-cray-ness." (Man, webster should holler cuz I'm making up some awesome vocab words. My english teacher mom will be proud...Hey Mom!). I know girls have periods, puberty and body changes. Girls are labeled as harder and emotions everywhere. I would debate though that teenage boys...equally as weird, hormonal, puberty-ness and well funny. Girls, I know so much emotions swirl in your little heart in a day. For boys I don't think they have 4,000 words they want to share with someone but they are equally as clumsy, awkward and need help. They aren't Mr. Cool Face all the time. (This point goes back being a good friend b/c all y'all got to many cells that are cray-cray to be anything but friends.) For all adults...like a 7th grade boy is maybe my favorite to try and conversate with...it's hysterical. (Conversate...totally not a word)
4. Boys are boys. Don't make them girls or make them Channing Tatum in Step Up (the original, let's be honest after the 1st one it was pretty much downhill from there.) Don't be mad that for Valentine's day your boyfriend of 12 hours just got you a box of those chocolates from Walmart...maybe I over dramatize, no, I've heard it before from your girlies at kamp. Be glad they are boys and you are a girl. I just cringe when girls say...I have no girlfriends. I just hang out with guys. Sweet girl, that's not that cool. You need your girlfriends. They need guy time. They need to explore and conquer stuff and girls need to bake with their moms and crochet (you don't do that, oh, here's hoping that's what the teenage version of my baby L, baby B and baby T girls want to do or I'll just be moving to a cave in Australia and have prearranged marriages to my best friend's children...it's do-able, us kanakuk people know how to have babies!).
5. Boys are creations of the Most High God who intimately knows how awesome of a gift they are and YOU are. I hate to use such a cliche but here it comes...what if we started to look at boys...the guy you are crushing on, the guy who gets slammed into his locker by the football jocks every day, the guy who you ate mud pies with growing up, the guy who is the most popular for all the wrong reasons...each of those guys as your brother. The brother who loves you, protects you, makes you laugh...a brother. A brother who is a great friend, but not a boyfriend since you and he are all of 13 years old. A brother who is a great date for prom b/c you can dance like a crazy person and laugh, but not a great date for prom if he has a room key waiting. A brother who can come over and play games with your folks and build a friendship if you must hang out with each other, but not a boy who honks his horn for you to come out or even worse, comes and shakes your daddy's hand and then that hand is roaming places it shouldn't later on in the date. He is your brother. You are his sister. Live as such...until your hand is placed in the one Jesus has written to hold your most precious heart. (Or until Jesus holds your heart and comes back and we are all jamming in Heaven in MC Hammer pants...I'm just sure of it).
So there ya go...please no theological debates or "let's anonymously argue" on comments. I have no degree, officially but just my thoughts to make you smile and maybe see the world a little different...go hug your daddy or high five your friends...girls and guys alike!
Click
HERE to read "What I Wish I Could Tell My Teenage Self about...FAMILY."
Be awesome & Love Jesus,
kanakuk ashley robbins
ashley@kanakuk.com
Wanna come to summer camp!
You totally should!