I Wish I Knew Now What I Knew in High School.....Theoretically!

U.S. Supreme Court Building in D.C--My Kids Who Are Already Much Smarter Than I Ever Will Be.

     When I was in high school, I knew everything!  So did my friends.  So did my fellow classmates.  So did High Schoolers of the World Forever United (HSWFU)--okay, I made that last one up but it is true in concept. 

     When we were older teens we knew, for example, that our parents were not very smart and that their only aim was to bring us down to their level of boredom, misery, and bodily aches and pains.  Hey, we felt sorry for them because we were wise enough to see that they were losing their minds due to old age.  It was obvious they needed us way more than we needed them--except for money, food, shelter and other such niceties that they owed us anyway. 

     We knew lots of other stuff too.  We also knew how to get rich, buy big houses, and have every conceivable toy known to man (and woman). If our parents and teachers would have only encouraged us to pursue our no-brainer careers in the NBA, MLB, or NFL rather than try to convince us that we couldn't do it, I could have a statue in front of one of America's great arenas like Stockton and Malone. The same holds true for all of my friends--professional models, rockstars, Hollywood stars, football players, and tycoons.

     My research uncovered a cruel conspiracy against our progress. I am not some conspiracy nut so you need to believe me.  Our magic carpet was pulled out from under us when so-called statistics were waved in our faces assuring us that such dreams of stardom were highly unlikely.  As an accommodation to our parents and teachers, we conceded to their fears.  But make no mistake about it--we knew how to realize our dreams and would have BUT FOR the poisonous "dose of reality" our elders made us gag down in the name of sensibility.  We knew best but caved in to the "wisdom of age."  It hurts to think about what should have been.  We had it right there in the palm of our hands and look at us now.  Balding, overweight, and paying a mortgage like everyone else.  It didn't have to be this way. 


     We also knew about immortality.  Bad things simply could not and would not happen to us.  It just wasn't in our cards.  Couldn't they see that and just trust us.  We are all pretty much alive now and ;mostly sane so we must have been right.  Luck paid no part in it--don't go there.  The endless worrying and nagging about our "risky" behaviors only forced us to push the envelop more and more.  And for what gain?  Simply put, we had everything under control all along and the proof is in the pudding.  The underage parties and living in the fast lane were just innocent past-times.  We gained wisdom by conquering the enemy (and the enemy was not us as our parent's thought).  Oh, the paranoia!  As parents today we have legitimate concerns but our parents just did't know how good they had it.


     Okay, okay, I will admit that we made a few mistakes.  Our parents weren't always wrong.  They just didn't realize how smart we were and how we could have helped them be even better parents, that's all.  Is there anything wrong with being honest about this cross-generational irony.

   Sadly, our kids now act a lot like we did.  Thank heaven that we wisely know better than to listen to our kids.  Can you believe it--they actually think they know everything.  We don't know why our parents laugh when we tell them our stories.  It's almost as if they are gloating.  We could use a little support here.  These dang kids are much harder than we ever were.  They are not nearly as bright as we were when we were their age; they just don't know that yet.  Go figure....