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Tara

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My name's Tara, and I live in the fabulous city of Atlanta (go Braves!) I enjoy reading, music, and long walks in the park. When I'm not busy lusting over Derrick from the Real World/Road Rules Challenge on MTV, I enjoy trying my hand in the kitchen. My family are genuine, "straight off the boat" It...

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Teenagers.

I’ve terminated corporate-level contracts, settled claims of libel from the public, and moderated public forums for upcoming elections…live. Heck, I even encountered a ghost and lived to tell the tale. But nothing – I repeat – nothing is scarier than performing for an audience of teenagers.

Nothing.

There was a time in my life when I thought I was cool. In fact, I was thoroughly convinced of this up until about one month ago, when I first became a mentor with the youth group at my church. From there, it’s been all downhill. Tonight, I realized just how dorky I truly am, as my attempt to lead a small group of teenage girls in a talk about faith bombed miserably. They weren’t rude, and they weren’t rowdy.

In short, they weren’t a damn thing.

Have any of you ever tried talking to a wall? My guess would be no. After all, what sane person would talk to a wall with the expectation that it would respond? Certainly not me. But tonight (I’m embarrassed to admit), I made an ass out of myself doing just that. Yes folks, I talked to a wall – a wall decorated with hoop earrings, too much mascara, and short-shorts. Oh yeah, and let’s not forget the looks of utter discontent. After all, where would we be without those?

I guess I shouldn’t take tonight’s fluke too personally. After all, they are just teenagers, and being “cool” in front of their peers is of the utmost importance. With that said, how can one expect to be “cool” by speaking up about God? What would the others think? Yes – it would be truly tragic if anyone ever found out that just one of them loved God in any way, shape, or form.

I just hope that one day (once the novelty of being independent wears off) they realize how important faith and having a relationship with Him truly is.

Going through what I went through tonight makes me wonder what I was like as a teenager, because in all honesty, I don’t remember. Was I too rude to shut the hell up when someone was leading a discussion? Was I unable to sympathize with a person who was struggling to get a response from someone – anyone? I’m only 28 years old, so I’m not that far off from them in age. So why is it I find them so intimidating?

There was a time when I was on top of the latest musical sensations. Fashion? I had it covered. I knew all the latest slang, as well as the proper methods of applying it. And friends? They flocked to me like moths to the flame. So where did I go amiss? The only thing that comes to mind is my utter lack of comprehending today’s mainstream music, and I thank God for that. These kids don’t know a damn thing about talent.

Fall Out Boy – give me break. Nirvana, Korn, and 311 – now that’s music.

But at the end of the day, I truly do want to get to know these kids. Excuse me – young adults. In fact, I wouldn’t be posting about tonight’s failure if it didn’t bother me so. One thing I will say is that I’ve never respected teachers more than I do now, especially at the high-school level.

And I’m definitely getting certified in Early Childhood.