The Life of Teenagers Ain't No Joke...: Living a Courageous Childhood, In an Unforgiving World

By Keith G. Wright

The Life Of Teenagers Ain't No Joke... Living A Courageous Childhood In An Unforgiving World, by Keith G. Wright, is a perfect parenting companion, creating family dialogue, and inspiring teenagers to lead exceptional lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jul 11, 2011
• ISBN: 9780977834242

Book preview

Grandma’

CHAPTER ONE

Who are those people living in your house?

This book, written for and spoken directly to our nation’s teenagers, is probably the most important book I have ever written. Because children are important people to me and children are obviously very important to this world, most of my public and private ambitions center on the future and promise of the world’s youth… the promise of your life.

To start, let me give you some straight talk, because I think teenagers want that, and really need that. I’m not going to blow smoke up your butts and repeat the same rah rah clichés that have been thrown your way. Regardless of what you’ve heard or what you think, living a great life can be extremely elusive. Everybody can’t be President of the United States. Everybody can’t be Astronauts. Everybody can’t be famous actors or famous music entertainers. Everybody can’t be a Hall of Fame athlete, and everybody can’t be a celebrated war hero. But everybody, absolutely everybody, walking the face of this earth can lead a great life… a life of promise. Everybody can make a positive impact on this country. All of us can make our lives matter, to ourselves, our families, and to the world.

"Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not.

In some schools they have abolished failing grades; they’ll give you as many chances as you want to get the right answer.

This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING"

- Charles J. Sykes

The reason there is so much pain and suffering in this world, and the reason why everyone on this earth is not rich, famous and happy, is simply because this world and this life ain’t no joke. And as you already know, the life of teenagers certainly ain’t no joke. There are so many obstacles that trip us, so many barriers that imprison us and so many rules, laws and traditions that intimidate us. Living in this world is difficult, by design seemingly, that very, very few people ever understand it or find their place in it. Mediocrity and failure are everywhere.

Even with that said, I want you to know that you were blessed with, at birth, the very things to overcome all of that. You carry within you, today, right now, the most powerful trait ever known to mankind, ever known to the world… the human spirit. The human spirit has to be the most powerful force on this earth. The human spirit allows you to go where no one else has ever gone before, to places you’ve never even dreamed of. And the human spirit allows you to overcome unthinkable odds.

"… because greater is he that is in you, …

than he that is in the world. …" 1 John 4:4

And that’s really what this book is all about; understanding the realities of the many obstacles you are facing now and will face in your life, yet realizing and bringing forth the greatness of your own individual human spirit, to accomplish all that your heart, mind and soul can envision.

No Joke Teen Truth #101: Nobody, absolutely nobody, will ever love you as much as your parents. At some point very early in my childhood, it became apparent to me that my mother was a can’t stop-won’t quit type of mother. As I’ve found myself in one predicament after another, I realized that my mother would instantly and instinctively take any and all evasive actions necessary to save my butt. And I realized that her efforts were head and shoulders above anything anyone else had ever done for me. You see, when it comes to loving their children, parents quickly separate themselves from the many people in our lives.

Your parents will go to the end of the world to rescue you from danger. Your parents will spend their last penny to provide for you. Your parents will fight to the very end, against anyone or anything that threatens to harm you. Your parent’s lives are enriched and blessed by your ultimate success and happiness in your own life. Having been raised by a single parent, I can tell you that there is no greater love than the love between mother and child. Please, open your hearts, open your minds, and open your eyes…. the greatest love you’ll ever know is the love your parents have for you right now.

Throughout your life, you will love and be loved by, hopefully, many people. But these people can and will come and go in your life… no one rooted through eternity like parents. No love nearly like the love your parents have for you. From birth to death, your parents are the proudest people of what your life has been and what your life will become. If you haven’t realized this yet, just ask your parents what it means to love a child. Then take a moment of thought and meditation, to ponder those answers. The truth of those answers will free your soul, to love and to be loved, in a way like no other.

No Joke Teen Truth #107: Everyday of their lives, successful teens show love and appreciation for their parents. Even when times are tough to understand, remember that you are the most important person in your parent’s lives. Your parents continue to strive for you, work for you, and push for you, but your parents can only love you the way they know how, the best way they know how. They can’t love you like your friend’s parents, and they don’t quite act the same or do the same things as the parents you see on television.

Hey, I don’t know about you, but the other parents I saw in my friends’ homes and on television, they all had there own issues and problems, the kind of problems I was glad my mom and I didn’t have to deal with. The parents you have are doing their best for you. They are ‘your’ parents. And they are proud of you and proud to be the folks raising you. One day you’re going to be in the same situation. You’re going to be responsible for your young children’s lives. And how you choose to do that will be the only way you know how… the best way you know. Just remember to everyday show appreciation for your parents, in some way, in your own way.

We never know the love of our parents for us till we have become parents.

- Henry Ward Beecher

Imagine life as an obstacle course that you’ve never run before. Imagine these obstacles to be the most treacherous and the most harrowing events of life, each turn presenting something new and potentially life threatening. As you wait your turn in line, you see many people fail at this obstacle course of life… broken dreams, high school drop-outs, fractured families, teenage pregnancy, alcohol and drug addictions, death or slowly dying, or worst of all, an obstacle course littered with quitters, folks who simply gave up. They gave up because life seemed too hard and they accepted whatever life was freely giving… whatever was easy.

Now imagine one or two people standing near the starting point of this course, waiting patiently, wanting to assist you and offer valuable advice. These people have been through the up’s and down’s, the in’s and out’s of life’s obstacle course. They’ve had some successes and some failures, but they’ve gotten through most of it while learning a great deal of what it takes to successfully navigate this journey. And guess what? These people want to share all of that wealth of knowledge with you. Not only that, but these people are willing to commit themselves to staying with you every step of the way, offering support, a helping hand, a shoulder to lean on and cry on, proudly cheering your accomplishments. And these people are willing to commit their entire lives to helping you, exclusively you, to overcome those obstacles and to succeed in everything that you want to do in life.

Who are these people? These people are your parents. They are the ones who will always be there for you. They are your parents. They are the people who love you more than anything else in this world. Let me say it again. They are ‘your’ parents. For as long as you live, please remember No Joke Teen Truth #101: Nobody, absolutely nobody, will ever love you as much as your parents.

Who’s Your Daddy? Who’s Your Real Daddy? …

For many kids, their biological