I know teenagers aren’t a huge portion of The PSL’s readership, so parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, involved next-door neighbors and educators, please share this with your teenagers.

Teens, I hate to break it to you, but they’re right. Those adults you know are right about everything. You don’t know anything. You don’t even know that you don’t know anything, but that’s okay. You’re not supposed to.

I have officially been “on my own” for about two months now — I don’t count college — but it has been two years, three months and four days since I’ve been a teenager. It hasn’t been long, but I think I’ve learned a thing or two in that short period.

I don’t miss high school, and it’s something I would never want to relive even though I had a happy childhood and an okay time.

Being a teenager is just confusing. Let’s be honest: in retrospect, it’s not that hard, but I think we can agree that it’s a confusing period in life.

Young teens are dealing with all of those “changes” middle school health teachers warned you about, and mid-to-late teenagers are trying to figure out what they want to. It’s a scary situation to have your entire adult life before you. I’m still dealing with that fear (but of course now it’s heightened because I have a degree to pay for).

Teens, one day you will realize that you vastly overreact about a lot of things: curfews, first cars, dating, Iggy Azalea (or whoever the kids are listening to). You think you have it rough, and I know; you probably hate adults telling you what you think. They know what you think, because despite what you believe, teenagers are all pretty similar in complexity levels.

A lot of you don’t have hard lives. A lot of you don’t even know the definition of hard (adj. requiring a great deal of endurance or effort). You won’t know hard until it slaps you in face.

I got lucky. I still haven’t gotten that slap in the face, but that’s the difference between you and me, teens. I know I have it easy.

Thank your parents, grandparents, teachers and even that lady at church that talks too much.

They all want what’s best for you. I want what’s best for you. You  teenagers are literally the future, so accept the character-building the adults throw at you.

Adults, when you’re doling out said character-building items, don’t forget about how confusing it was as a teenager. Annoy them and let them know you’re there and you actually know what it’s like being a teenager.