My passion for young people begins at home, like charity and everything else that costs me money. They are the ones who ask if I’m really, seriously, considering going out of the house, ‘dressed like that!’ Without their patient guidance I would still be using phrases like ‘pop songs’ and ‘cool’ in the company of friends. I would not have learned that ‘POS’ means Parent Over Shoulder on MSN and that ‘book’ in a text message is more likely to mean ‘good’ than something you would pick up and read.
Life with teenagers is a daily education. But you can be assured that the research continues with every slam of the front door and every pair of trainers I trip over in the kitchen. There is nothing more ridiculous than someone of my considerable age trying to ‘get down’ with ‘the youth’. Try to emulate the language and you’re out of date before you’ve even got your head around Emo or Scat (which is a very serious insult, by the way).
If you really do want to work with young people my best advice is to try to retain some dignity; be honest at all times; be respectful of their complex world, its subtle rules, allegiances and etiquette; put your prejudices aside and remember that, like spiders in the bath, they are often just as scared of you as you are of them.
My Olympics
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