Adolescence is that wonderful time when we are graced with the ability to have emotions. We move beyond accepting simple “yes or no” answers and start to ask “why” and consider how those answers make us feel. Everything is driven (quite powerfully) by an emotion. It can’t simply be that we admire someone for the way they wear their hair or their choice of fragrance. No, it is undying love. The kind of love that will last for an eternity (or at least a week) and parent’s simply can’t understand because they are too old. But don’t take my word for it, tell a teenage girl that she can’t go hang out with her boyfriend and watch the fury that evolves.
The problem is that these emotions are very real. But, at this point in our lives, we lack the experience and wisdom to deal with them properly. Romeo and Juliet may be the greatest love story ever told but what would have happened had the message gotten through and their original plan worked? They both would have managed to skip town and live happily ever after without the unfair supervision of their parents. Or would they?
It’s much more likely that, given enough time together, they would have realized that love wasn’t worth dying over. Juliet would have disclosed that she simply worships Panic at the Disco and Romeo would have stated that he doesn’t like bands who wear makeup. They would have fought and Juliet would realize that she can’t stand to be with a man who doesn’t respect her opinion on the things that are most important in life like great hair and music.
Granted, it would still be a tragic love story. These two teens wouldn’t have sacrificed their lives to be together, just their future. They would have ended up finding themselves penniless, uneducated and jobless not to mention single. If they thought they had problems before, they would eventually come to realize that true problems come when emotion wins over logic. So, while it may seem like great advice to follow your heart, you might want to take a close look at your heart’s itinerary to see where you’ll end up.
Photo courtesy lelec@sxc.hu
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