End of an era that I’m not ready to finish

I’m not really sure when, but at some point in our lives we hit an age where we have to accept we have officially reached adulthood. I’m currently refusing to accept that 18 is that age because, although in the eyes of the law me and most of my friends are now adults, I can’t quite take in the pace at which we are growing up.

Growing up. It’s a scary thought in itself. I decided to write this post because nostalgia has hit and all I really want right now is to be 18 forever. Last week I was performing ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ with a theatre company I have been a member of since I was 6. The final performance on Saturday was even more memorable than usual however because it was the last time I’ll perform with them (at least for a little while) – exams and uni are calling.

I can’t quite explain what that feels like. This company has been such a big part of my life throughout all of my childhood and I don’t want to move on yet. I have met people who will be some of my best friends for years to come and I know for a fact that I am the person I am today because of them. Some of my friends are also leaving now this show has finished, so at least I’m not alone in my emotions.

Isn’t it weird how when you’re younger you feel like things like this will just carry on forever. I don’t ever remember stopping to think about how parts of my life will inevitably change at some point. And now I’m faced with them changing quicker than I ever expected.

Now the show has finished I feel a little bit lost. I’ve gone from being on such a high, to feeling like everything is changing too fast. And that just makes me want to cry and spend a good few days on the sofa in my dressing gown.

Here’s some pictures of me at the after show party on Saturday. I distinctly remember feeling too happy (and too drunk) to do anything but smile at how amazing this 12 year long experience has been. I want to hold on to it for as long as possible.

And here’s two more at the theatre. I couldn’t be more grateful for all the memories and laughter. I’ll never forget them.

Sex Ed – The Debate

The debate over sex education in schools and the best way to tackle the issue has been ongoing for a number of years. Some say we’re already starting it too early and not letting children have their childhood, others argue we’re not starting this vital education early enough. Whatever side you take, it is without doubt a very important issue. This is something that all schools need to get right, and quickly.

This isn’t the type of subject that I would usually comment on, but as this is something that has  already affected most of us as teenagers, we all probably have an opinion on whether our own schools succeeded in their sex education curriculum.

As a sixth former, I was recently given the opportunity to help revamp the sex education in my own school along with some of my friends. We were given the challenge of preparing a lesson for the Year 10s that needed to tackle ‘What is a healthy relationship?’
Our school has always provided sex education, but as to whether it covered everything it needed to or whether it was taught to the right age group is something that hadn’t occurred to me. When it came to leading the Year 10s in the lesson we had prepared, my eyes were really opened. These girls were already aware of a lot of the issues, and discussed it in a very mature and understanding manner. In reality, they had probably already had similar lessons further down the school, but it is a known fact that many schools would see age 14/15 as an appropriate age to raise these issues. Speaking to these girls made me realise it is absolutely not. This education needs to begin for them at a much younger age. Realistically, even if they’re not being taught it in school, it doesn’t mean they won’t come across situations where the education would have helped. Why not bring compulsory sex education into the curriculum when it will actually be useful to them?

Having said this, in my personal opinion I do support the belief that we need to be careful not to introduce it too early. It is becoming increasingly obvious that children are growing up more and more quickly, with primary school children watching their famous role models in sexualised music videos which are just not appropriate for them. Some argue that parents will know their child the best, and therefore know when they need to become aware of the issues surrounding sex. Children develop at different rates, and will continue to do so through their teenage years. Why should pupils be exposed to things that parents do not feel their children are ready for, just because others in their class are?

I think the most important debate here however is not whether sex ed is needed or not – at some stage it is, and I personally think that a school’s role in this is vital. What is more necessary to consider is at what age it should be introduced. Is early secondary school soon enough? Or should the education begin through the primary years with careful consideration of the nature of the issues discussed? What I find quite sad about this debate is that the minority will always outweigh the majority. While most of a class may not need the information they are given until a lot further in the future, the school still has a duty to protect all of its students. For the education of a few students, there will always be others that are exposed to issues at an unnecessarily early age for them individually.

This is such a controversial debate that maybe schools are afraid of how to tackle the issue. I find it incredible that in the 21st century, we have still not reached a point where at least all secondary schools across the country are providing acceptable education for an issue that is arguably one of the most useful in terms of what the pupils will actually use upon leaving school. It increases their knowledge of their health and well-being, and helps them develop positive attitudes towards themselves and their relationships with others.

What do you think – was the sex education you received good enough? Was it covered too early? Or too late? Do you think improvements still need to be made?

In the words of Olly Murs, ‘Change is gonna come’

We’re teenagers. Simply being in that age category gives us an excuse to be emotional and moody for sometimes no reason at all, just by being under the age of 25. Lately I’m finding myself to be a lot more soppy than usual though. And you know what’s causing that? Change. Change in so many different ways and decisions I need to make in the near future that have the power to define my entire life.

Here’s the problem. I went back to school only a few weeks ago after a gorgeous summer and began another school year, just like normal. However this year is different and the prospect is kind of scary; this year is our last year of sixth form. How my education at secondary school is coming to an end already I cannot understand at all.

It took only a few days of beginning the new term before the realisation began to obviously show across the faces of most of our year. We have a few months left before we need to start applying to unis, or just work out what to do with ourselves after those final exams. And in the case of those of us thinking about university, that meant we probably had to visit some…in the next few weeks. Cue: manic rush to book open days.

So that’s change no. 1. Admittedly, probably the biggest. It’s just it’s not great to still not be 100% sure of what to do next, while we’re suddenly being forced to make some huge decisions about what to study for the next 3-4 years of our lives, let alone thinking about the possibility of having to move away for that. If I do choose to study in a different city, not seeing my family every day is going to be extremely difficult – I will miss them so much.

Change no. 2 also revolves around university (hey, doesn’t everything at the moment?). I’m watching the year above me move away and start their new courses. This is the first year where that’s really had an impact on me, because they’re people I’ve grown up with. One of my closest friends is now living in a different city for the next 3 years…it’s kind of hard to get my head around. Then there’s the problem of keeping in contact, because I’ll no longer be automatically seeing those people on a weekly basis anymore. I mean, even those that are going to the uni in their home city are starting a new chapter of their lives, and it’s weird to watch people grow up like that.

Finally, change no. 3. I haven’t actually mentioned it on this blog yet, but something that’s been incredibly annoying for me for over a year now has been the stress of applying for a part time job. I have had such little luck with every single job application I have filled out (and I’m sure it’s got to be near 100 of them now – no, I’m not exaggerating). But suddenly, within the space of the last two weeks, I’ve been offered two different interviews! I’ve already done the first one and I feel like it went well, so I’m really hoping they offer me the job. However, even that’s a significant change in my life. Checking job websites has taken up a lot of my time over the past year, and so you can imagine actually being offered an interview for the first time ever was a scary thought! And with all of my friends also in jobs/looking for one, it’s another sign we’re all growing up.

I suppose the fact that the thought of all these different changes is making me extremely nostalgic and emotional is really a good thing. I’ve been so happy with my life lately that I don’t really want it to change. I don’t want to move on and to probably lose contact with a few friends in the process, and I can’t help but think of that when I’m around them. I love my school as much as anyone could love a school, and I love everyone in my life a huge amount (see, the extra soppy personality I have lately is making an appearance in this post too).

The thing is, ask anyone that knows me well and they’ll tell you I’m one of the most indecisive people they know. That’s probably not helping with all of these very important decisions heading my way either.

Do you see what I see?

Teenage hood brings about a variety of problems. Spots being one of them. Infinite amounts of revision being another. But one issue that intrigues me greatly is not something necessarily obvious to every young person in the world. Not everyone can see it or the effect it has on them and, more often than not, this confusing topic is only made apparent whilst being around our own friends.

Self image. What you see when you look in the mirror.

This year especially I have realised the impact this one small issue can have on an entire generation of young people. It has become obvious to me that a few of my closest friends have, in general, a very negative view of themselves at times. That’s not to say they have a bad self-image 24/7. I don’t think it works like that – everyone has their bad days. But what is very clear is that there is always something in the back of their mind that can affect not only their confidence but also how they treat other people, as well as themselves. ‘I’m not pretty enough.’ ‘I need to lose some weight.’ ‘She looks much better than me today.’

Recently I came across a video online which was linked to a beauty campaign for a popular soap brand. Upon watching this video I realised just how significant self-image is in everyday life. I immediately felt this campaign was not only extremely important, but could also be of great use to many young girls.

In the clip, an artist took a small number of regular women and asked them to describe their face and features to him in detail. He asked them a number of questions and drew what they described as they said it. He could not see them. He was drawing purely on what they said about themselves. Afterwards, the artist asked each of the women to complete the same process but for one of the other woman. All of them described the beauty of the woman they had just met.

The two drawings of each person (one of how they had described themselves, one of how someone else saw them) were very, very different. It highlighted how we as humans pick out the faults in ourselves, which most of the time are completely invisible to other people. The first drawing of each woman was harsh and full of imperfections. The second was full of natural beauty. The difference overwhelmed the women with emotions, and truly inspired me.

However, upon showing this to one of my friends one day, her response was not something I had considered: ‘Yeah, but that’s not always true’.

Although she completely understood the video and its purpose, she suggested that for some people what they think they look like is what they actually look like. She was talking about herself. No matter how many times she was told what she thought about herself was wrong and untrue, she couldn’t believe it – we were ‘just trying to make her feel better’.

So, what I want to know is, is there actually a way to get other people to believe in their natural beauty? Without being a professional, can you ever change someone’s self-image at all? Let me know. Is this negative view just fixed?

An A Level student attempting to inspire

Hello!
Welcome to ‘The Beginning of Your Journey’. I’m hoping that maybe you’re a teenager? Because as I enter my last year of school, I decided to start this blog to give all my (possibly helpful, possibly not) advice, tips, rants and stories on why secondary school is one of the most important periods of your life. Your future is just beginning!

For once, you do not need to tick a box to confirm you are over 18….for this blog, being under 18 and thoroughly confused about the future is the only requirement.

Here we go everyone, let’s embrace the fact we are well on our way to entering the adult world! (and feeling totally unprepared and nowhere near mature enough for it)

I’m Megan by the way, it’s very nice to meet you. Give the blog a follow while you’re here, I promise to try and be as helpful as possible. After all, I must have picked up something worthwhile in my 13 years of education!