I do not agree that youthhood is the best time of one's life. However, I would say that it is the most important period of one's journey to self fufilment and discovery. I believe that most permanent characteristics are developed
during one's teenage years. Now, I will like to compare youths of then and now.
I feel that youths are having a harder life today. Now, the standards of living are actually rising in general, but it seems that life has become more complex. In the past, the environment is more instable, but instability leads to more potential to excel. Now, if one has to break free of the cycle of poverty and rise through social classes, it will be alot tougher as now, opportunities are very limited. If we look into the issue closely, we will know that stress levels have increased for youths, especially with stiffer competition in schools. Due to globalisation, the youths today are not just competing with the people within their own country, but with the world, which are the scholars from India, China and etc. Whereas, in the past, people can just survive even if they do not have much education. Hence, youths must not just learn to cope with stress, but also learn to be more open and realise that it is not a weakness to show that you are in trouble and talk to people about it if necessary.
Therefore, it is important that parents have to keep an open attitude with their children. They should encourage the child to talk more freely about their daily experiences. This habit should start early for the child as when they get older, it will be difficult to let the child open their hearts to their parents. One should also not reprimand the child too much as this will create a fear within the child that is if they do anything wrong, they will be discredited. As a result, the child may not talk to their parents about their troubles. It is only bottled up feelings that can create an avalanche of problems; this include taking drugs, having a rebellious attitude and etc.
To really help youths to go through this rough patch of life, we must first understand the root of the problem. Youths usually have trouble coping with life because they are uncertain-----they are uncertain about the changes within their body; emotional and physical. If we learn to understand their emotional needs and counsel them, the results will be dynamic.
In conclusion, we need to give youths a venue to vent their frustrations, then they should be fine.
