Our start of adulthood
In a few weeks, we will be saying goodbye to the last decade of our childhood and hello to the first decade of our adult lives. We will take all that we’ve learned in the past 10 years—social skills, work skills, personal wellness skills—and put it to the test. While this step is an intimidating one, it is accompanied by the guarantee of excitement.
“Everything is looking forward, starting next year,” Sophie Kurtz, 12, said. While she, like most of us, can’t help but look forward to the future, to when things will be different, she can’t ignore the responsibilities that loom over the freedoms that follow. “I don’t feel like I know enough about everything you have to do. Bills, taking care of yourself, making sure you eat—I know it sounds stupid but it’s kind of terrifying to think about.”
Of course, there will always be uncertainties that come with growing up. Mrs. Amanda Wallace, a St. Joe math teacher, admits that it’s not all fun and freedoms. “This adulting thing sucks. You just have to figure it out as you go,” she said. But, she also emphasizes how this next decade will also bring exciting things for us.
photo by christina morillo from pexels.com
In the next decade, some of us will be getting married, moving out of Michigan, beginning a career, and even establishing families. By the end of the 2020s, we will be creeping closer to age 30! Our stresses will no longer be about science tests or how well we do in sports. Instead, they’ll be about paying bills or keeping our jobs. But what comes with these new responsibilities is new freedoms.
Voting, drinking, and ownership are all rights we have to look forward to exercising. You can finally put the political beliefs you’ve spent the past ten years developing to use. No longer will your voice be expressed only through words, typed on the internet or said in the classroom, but you can put your vote on a ballot where it will make a difference. No more worries about MIPs—though hopefully that wasn’t a concern in the first place—once you turn 21. This opens new social opportunities; not having to hang out at the movie theater or ice cream places, now bars become a new leisure spot. Soon we will tackle ownership: buying versus leasing cars, house hunting, and other big purchases.
“The biggest thing that happens right away is your freedom, because you go from being in school 7 hours a day, where you go to the same classes over and over again, to being in college where your time is your time,” Mrs. Wallace said.
However, we don’t have to stress about taking on these responsibilities alone. In the next decade, many of us will be settling down with a partner, getting married or even having kids. Not only do we get to choose who we spend the rest of our lives with, but also where. You have the freedom to leave St. Joe and find where you want to live. If terrible Michigan winters aren’t your thing, you have anywhere else in the country, or the world, to explore.
What is different about our generation compared to others is that we are no longer automatically expected to go to college right away. In this next decade, we will all be stepping toward our future in a career, but not everyone will take the same path. This opens up many exciting doors we get to explore, not only including college but apprenticeships, trade school or serving your country in the military.
And finally, with technology developing every day, our generation has the ability to make great advances. Self-driving cars, space exploration, and medical advancements will define the 2020s.
“Stepping into this decade, we can bring new innovations and ideas to the market which will not only improve our economy but our everyday lives in general,” Rhett Huie, 11, said.
Though I can’t tell you exactly what will happen in our future, I can guarantee we have a lot to look forward to in the new decade about to begin.