This was a piece I wrote for school a few months ago.
Adolescence is, in some respects, not a calm period in life. It is more like river rapids - confusing, even a bit dangerous, but at the same time, exciting. There have been pieces in the media on why it is important for people to go through certain life stages before they move on to the next stage; adolescence is one that is to be savoured for its moments of beauty, and remembered for the important lessons learned.
Adolescence can be seen as a staggered trial period for adult life. Teenagers are gradually introduced to aspects of adult life - such as making independent and well-informed decisions - without the full set of responsibilities of living as an independent adult. While it is expected that teenagers gradually become more mature, they are also afforded the freedom to be whimsical and child-like. In this way they have a chance to find the balance between the elements of the mature adult and the playful child.
This stage of life is also a trial period for various selves. Teenagers try on different outer selves (e.g. fashion) as well as inner selves (personality). Through trial and error, teenagers find an inner and outer self which rests on a solid base yet is open to new ideas and is thus flexible as well. They (hopefully) find a self which is solid enough to proclaim ''This is who I am and this is what I stand for'' yet flexible enough to say ''Maybe this new idea is more beneficial than the idea which already exists.''
The pre-adolescent years only last twelve years. Adult life passes quickly in a haze of family, friends, work and socialising. It seems a shame to miss out on seven years of making cherished memories and learning valuable lessons (albeit often the hard way). The ways of a child and the ways of an adult are vastly different in so many ways; it makes sense to have an in-between stage. This in-between stage should not be viewed as some inconvenient tollgate on the highway of life, but rather as a journey - a journey that takes us out of the child phase and gradually into the adult phase. The child years place limitations on what we can do - imagine the average ten-year-old having to travel solo to a foreign country and spend three months there - but the adult years can place limits on our time. As we grow up, it becomes harder to travel, play sports, participate in cultural activities and community service, and still keep up-to-date with work, as teenagers do in high school. This is not to say that teenagers have unlimited time for everything, but are more often than not free from the obligations of a full-time career, parenthood and looking after aging parents.
Adolescence allows for the silliness which is often frowned upon in adult life, yet allows for the development of a mature, independent person. Adolescence is an important bridge between two very different life stages. The idea of deleting adolescence seems, in some ways, cruel and cold, and also stifling. Youth is a candle flame that is blown out all too quickly by the winds of time. It is therefore fitting to savour this time of learning and beauty.
