Yesterday in Health Class the teacher had us copy down the definition of the word stress.

Stress: noun a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstance

Do you think after 4 years of Science, 4 years of studying history, of reading complex literature, of studying for the sat, of watching and reading the news or even of just walking outside of my room a few times a day that I don’t know  the definition of the word stress? That I don’t know that drugs and unprotected sex are dangerous? That I don’t know that a carrot is healthier than a piece of cake? 

 

It seems to me that some adults think that stupidity is a side effect of being a teenager.

That  because my two digits dont denote the amount of hours that theirs do  I am lowly and dense and that they are all powerful and wise. 


Yes, sometimes my shorts are not the right size, sometimes my math is a little bit off, and sometimes I completely forget that Richard Mourdock is anything but a punchline that Jon Stewart uses to make me laugh but that doesn’t make me all together unintelligent. 

 

And yes, your years earn you the right to respect, but don’t confuse that with the right to condescend.

 

Sure teach me please teach me whats healthy and whats bad but do so in a way that isn’t just a retelling of sad stories meant to scare or a series of guest speakers from Madd and Dare because if I wanted to be scared I would watch Fox news and if I wanted to be angry I would listen to Ted Cruiz but you’re job isn’t to make me either of those things. You’re job is to provide me with information that I don’t already have. 

 

There’s a difference between learning and regurgitating. There’s a difference between facts and slogans. There’s a difference between teaching and preaching. 

 

I recognize that my sexual education is a privilege. That there are girls living in this country in spring awakening-like conditions and I am thankful.  But, I mean, lets be fair, I’ve learned more from 3 minutes of HBO’s Girls than I’ve ever learned in your classroom chair. 

 

Look, you want to talk about stress? I am stressed. I have a lot on my plate and the hours I don’t have spend shoving things off of that plate are precious. If you want to take those hours, don’t you dare waste them. 

 

Don’t you dare assume that I am the bottom of the barrel. 

Don’t you dare assume that I’d prefer to sit in that room idly than be spoken to like an adult. 

Don’t you dare assume that I am just a teenager. 

 

Because I am not just a teenager. 

 

I am a student

I am a poet 

I am a musicien 

Maybe I’m a future politicien 

or your could be grandchild’s pediatrician

I am the next person to make an oscar acceptance speech

or the subject of  the next mtv scandal  

but even if these fortunes are not mine to take,

make no mistake

I am not an idiot. 

And I dont deserve to be treated like one.