Becoming hypocritical with age

I think my main problem with the majority of adults is that they tend to forget what it was like to be young. Whether or not they like to admit it, they were our age once. Believe it or not, they were just like a lot of us not too long ago. They may have four different degrees, own a house and have kids of their own, but they were kids themselves at one point.

I can’t even begin to describe the number of times my parents seem to forget this. They are always yelling at me about situations I know they were in approximately 40 years ago. So I like to procrastinate. Everybody does. Yet my parents seem to believe that procrastination did not exist until the new millennium. I’m quite certain you’d wait until the last minute to do your homework as well, mother.

The whole “Do your homework early” issue doesn’t bother me nearly as much as some others do. My siblings and I frequently refer to situations as “awkward” and discuss ways in which we can avoid them. This does not please my parents in the slightest. They will almost always reply “It’s only awkward if you make it awkward.” Well I’m sure that’s true at the nursing home, in college, it’s awkward. That’s just how it is. If I run into my ex-girlfriend, it’s awkward. And I’d like to avoid it. Why can’t my parents see that?

A friend of mine, who has never been in any kind of real trouble, still has a curfew at age 21. This can only be described as ridiculous. Even if she was a troublemaker in her early years, you’d think by age 21, there would be no more curfew. There still is. What is it actually accomplishing? The case could be made that if she is unhappy with her parents’ rules, she could move out. But that’s a lot easier said than done. Most people are stuck with mom and dad for a lot longer than they’d prefer.

I can’t help but feel like parents with strict policies are more or less attempting to “get back at” their parents, who probably had similar rules. But punishing your children for your parents’ rules is slightly unnecessary. You can’t tell me that someone who is 50 years old believed that kids needed boundaries when they were 17. When they were 17, they were probably out doing the exact same things their 17 year old is doing today.

I also feel like several professors take offense when students don’t have their homework or aren’t paying attention during class. They can’t help it. They’re young and don’t necessarily see the big picture yet. Homework doesn’t seem nearly as important as hanging out with their friends. Of course, one day they’ll realize this. But it may not be for quite awhile.

I’m not saying homework is unimportant. I know it is much more important than hanging out with friends. That’s not the point. The point is that adults tend to forget their early years and punish younger generations for it. It’s honestly hypocritical. Sure, adults are almost always right. But there was a time when they weren’t. I find it funny how they can’t seem to remember that.