A Bad Day is OK

"I cried because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet."

This is a favourite saying of my sister-in-law. She quotes it whenever her teenage son or daughter is moping about the house. She used it a few days ago when her sixteen year old son was in a grump because his bike chain broke and ruined his plans to join his friends. This day he was frustrated enough to have an answer.

"Mom, I get what you're saying, and I feel bad for the guy with no feet. But it also really sucks to have no shoes."

I had to agree with my nephew. 

Ahh, the carefree days of youth. No worries, no stress. Just fun, fun, fun. Right?

I think we too easily forget what it's like to be a teen. They may not have the worries of a mortgage, or car payments, or a full time job, but their problems are real. We're all entitled to a bad day. Knowing someone else has it worse may encourage empathy, but it doesn't cancel out how your teen feels right now. A little understanding goes a lot further than platitudes.

Bad days happen to us all. Give your teen a break. And maybe a wide berth.