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Teenage Relationships: How Old is Too Young?

By Sara Jamison

"You're not dating 'til your 50."

"Don't even think about it, honey."

"WHAT?!"

Sound familiar? When we teens ask about the big topic of dating, parents either tense up, overreact, joke around, or totally ignore the subject. Why? Good question.

A good percent of teens these days believe that their parents don't think their teenage son or daughter has the maturity and responsiblity to handle a stable relationship. Neither do half the parents of the nation. According to Lewis-Clark State College unit on divorce, 50 to 60 percent of marriages are likely to end in divorce. Hmmm. Nice odds. Maybe this means that people at any age might not be ready for a commitment of any sort. I believe that in the wedding vows it says "Till death do us part." Maybe they should change that to "Till we get a divorce." Sounds more fitting for this generation of married couples.

OK, so not all marriages end up in divorces, but as the percents show, quite a bit do. Maybe this loss of trust in the parents' relationships has made parents weary of letting their older child date, afraid that future problems will scar their children for life. But as us teens know, dating is just a way of seeing what's out there for us, in terms of "the one." Most of us understand that chances are, we're not going to be stuck with this guy/girl for the rest of our lives. Dating gives most of us the chance to have a sense of security, a sense of love and caring that some possibly do not receive under their own roofs, and it also give us something that makes us feel good and whole inside.

"But I don't want you to get hurt," is a typical response from a parent. Children and teens learn from mistakes. Children learn that when they pet the dog a certain way, the dog will bite. They eventually learn not to pet the dog this way. With teens and dating, we date a guy that is quite popular, find out he's a real jerk, and dump him. After that, we have the tendency to swear off all popular guys, and find "Mr. Right" in a separate crowd. If parents don't let us make mistakes, chances are we will be stuck in wacked-up relationships like 50 percent of the United States are in.

Standards also plays a big part in dating. Teens should realize that looks aren't everything. OK, so he is cute, but he could also be one of the most boring people in the world. We have to realize that we have to look past the covering and see what is inside. A humourous, fun, laid-back girl is a whole lot better than little Miss Airhead blonde in math class. After being with someone for quite a while, one realizes how cute their partner really is in their own little way.

Age is nothing, according to most of us. But to parents, they think it is very important. Age is a number, not a maturity level. Parents should be aware of when their teen has a maturity level to understand what dating is all about. Teens should also be aware of when they are ready for a relationship with the opposite sex, and when they are mature and responsible enough to understand the meaning of love and affection.

Truly, all of us want someone in our lives that we will love forever, but sometimes it doesn't work that way.

But sometimes, it does.