I'm an adult. I can do what I want.
Really?
How did young adults get the message that being an adult is about being totally independent, self-centered, selfish and disrespectful?
Could it be because for several decades now we've referred to obscene words as "adult" words, to alcoholic beverages as "adult" beverages, to movies full of sexual activity, nudity, violence and cursing as "adult" movies?
Profanity, drunkness, immorality are not the purview of adults and are unwise for persons of any age.
I'm grateful that my parents, grandparents and others of influence realized that being an adult was about giving up your rights and desires in order to give to those in need.
If, as an adult, I met my own needs and desires first without regard to those of others, my children would have suffered irreperable harm.
Giving birth is painful. Parenting is sometimes painful.
Being an adult is not so much about doing what I want, as it is about using self-conrol and self-denial, recognizing that delayed gratification is preferable to impulsive, reckless behavior.
Be an adult and show young adults and teens what it really means.
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Editor's note: Annette Beard is the managing editor of The Times of Northeast Benton County. She has nine children, four sons-in-law, seven grandsons and two granddaughters. She can be reached at abeard@nwadg
Editorial on 09/23/2015