Reader advisory: emotional bio-hazard
Teenagers have their own set of haters — namely skeptics and killjoys — who simply disapprove.
The prolific texting, the reckless driving, the that’s-what-she-said jokes, the cyberfixation, all of it. They simply disapprove. And what they disapprove of the most, above all other forms of adolescent indulgence and stupidity, is the L-word.
I know, because I am a reformed hater.
Having used phrases like “crippled by the throes of puppy love” in this very column, I was prepared to write viciously about the asininity of love. But after weeks of contemplation and silent musing, I can’t do it.
There’s a fine line between love, which tends to be highly overrated (special thanks to Ryan Gosling), and young love. The subtle difference lies in the implication of the latter — young love allows for growth, maturation, and possibly a grand denouement. Love alone, however, is little more than a lofty, hackneyed ideal. Stripped of the puerility associated with adolescents in love, there is little to scoff at. As a learning experience or rite of passage, young love takes upon new dimension. At the end of the day, neither skeptic nor killjoy can growl at growth and maturation.
So to the young and emotionally reckless crippled by the throes of puppy love, I say limp on and let the haters hate! They’re wrong, and so was I.
