I’m a senior in high school.

With this title comes a wave of responsibility, stress, and emotions that I have been feeling since I stepped foot into North back in August.

Since, I have had to deal with work, school, and college planning, while still dealing with friendships, relationships, and family issues. (Work eats up my entire weekends, so it’s hard to keep my social life in order.)

I’m a little stressed.

So yeah, every teenager goes through these things (at least most do anyway). “Buck up,” some may tell us. That’s life. It’s only going to get harder later on. But should I really take this answer? Should I really just sit back and accept the fact that there is nothing I can do about my stress? That life really is as hard as humans make it out to be? I don’t think so.

Teenagers these days are given so much responsibility and their expectations are so high that most break under pressure. Sure, we want responsibility. We want parents and teachers to treat us like we are adults. Believe it or not, we do accept the consequences of our actions. But sometimes, the types of responsibility and expectations that are bestowed on us are a little out of hand. Some have to work constantly because their parents can’t afford to give their kids what they want all the time. Some are pulling legs because they can’t afford the school they want to get into, and they were let go from their job. And with all this talk of the economy going down the drain, their stress level goes out the roof.

Teenagers don’t need this type of responsibility. We are already going through so much as it is. The last thing we need is to have mom or dad yelling at them about not doing the dishes or cleaning their room. Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t blame parents for having these types of expectations. It gives a child a good sense of character. After all, that famous, “Is your room clean?” line has been around since the dawn of time. But maybe it’s time that comments like this are given the back seat.

For now, teenagers need to focus on what’s really important. For me, it’s school, my family and close friends. Let the stress that you’re currently feeling melt away for a little bit and just enjoy being a kid. We don’t have that much longer to be them after all. Sure, it just may get harder later on in life like they tell us, but for now we should worry about the present and concentrate on the things that are truly important.