Dear anyone older than me by more than 5 years,

I don’t think I know everything. I know I’m not a “real” adult yet. I don’t think I have the rest of my life planned out. I AM, however, capable of having intellectual conversations with you and of having my own thoughts and opinions. Unbeknownst to you, I am not, in fact, a fetus. I am making real life decisions already! What college I will attend, how I choose to do my school work, and thinking about what occupation I want to pursue are all just examples of things I already have to be preoccupied with. That being said, I am still young, and I know it! Please stop belittling the activities that excite me. Yes, I’m excited for my senior prom. Yes, I’m excited for graduation and college and everything in between. I know you have already completed those landmarks of life, but that doesn’t mean you should be able to take away the excitement that I have to finish them myself.

Teachers, parents, grandparents, school staff and anyone who disregards my ideas and feelings based on my age: remember that you were once 18, too. Please stop putting words into my mouth and making me sound like such a pretentious millennial. I know that I am young, I know that I need to respect my elders, and I also know that my ideas and opinions have value, regardless of what you think. I’m perfectly willing to live in harmony with those older than me, but mutual respect would be nice.

Sincerely,
18 years old.

Photo courtesy of Career Minds.