On age and maturity.

17Feb08

I’d like to think myself mature. Wise beyond my years, et cetera, et cetera. I suppose most people my age would. There’s no denying it, of course: on some occasions I would find it difficult to match the maturity level of a two year old.

I haven’t expressly hidden my age thus far on this blog, but I don’t believe I’ve drawn too much attention to it either. So, (because if I’m going to write a post about age, it would make sense for anyone who happens upon it to KNOW my age) I’m fourteen. Gasp, shock, horror? Maybe.

I firmly believe that age and maturity are only proportional to a certain degree. As a general rule, yes, an eighty-year-old WILL be more mature than a four-year-old. But I don’t think that’s because they were born seventy two years earlier, as such. I think it’s because they’ve seen more, they’ve felt more, they’ve read more, they’ve heard more, they’ve EXPERIENCED more.

So then, is it so impossible for a fourteen year old to be mature, or is it merely in our nature for us to consider ourselves so?

((On a slightly related note, I really don’t like the word ‘mature’. There’s something about it that irks me.))


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2 Responses to “On age and maturity.”  

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  1. 1 Lumpy on February 17, 2008 said:

    Interesting post. It’s hard for me to believe you are only 14 years old, just for the fact that you write so well! Age is simply a number. I just turned 38. I have a best friend that is only 23 years old. She is so knowledgeable ~ and just beyond her years. My son is 11 and has the presence of a 25-30 year old man. He’s finally having trouble hanging around with kids his own age. He is more interested in starting a legitimate business than playing video games.

    I was born in 1970 *wink* - I was SO acting my age. Had no sense of the world around me. I was just a normal every day teenager in the 80’s. But I wonder how much “the times have changed” forces our kids to become older and more mature for their age. For example, my daughter - also 11 years old, came home from school and was discussing the recent school shootings in Illinois. They had an “open discussion” in class. They discuss politics and everything in between from A - Z. We NEVER did that. That’s gotta make you way more aware of your surroundings and grow intellectually much quicker, eh?
    You have a bright future ahead of you, I can tell! Good for you!

  2. 2 Kaitlin on February 17, 2008 said:

    Thank you for the lovely comment. :-)

    Of course, the times HAVE changed a lot. I think that discussions such as that are incredibly beneficial–to those willing to partake in them, and listen, and learn.

    Perhaps it’s that there are more opportunities. Information is more readily available. There’s less censorship, I think. Though I wouldn’t know for sure, having never experienced anything different.

    I’ll be over to check out your own blog soon. For now, though–bedtime! ‘Night all.

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