Does it bother you when teens act like adults? There are many who are guilty of doing this, both around West Essex and the world. Granted, it can be annoying to be thought of as younger than you are when you so badly wish you were older. Life may seem better once you graduate college, but is it really worth the hype?

Plenty of adults wish they could flip a switch and go back to their younger years, so why rush through them? There is an overwhelming push from social media to grow up sooner than you might be ready.

Social media constantly shows teenage celebrities maturing rapidly, and this influence is rubbing off on teenagers. Kylie Jenner moved into a giant mansion, traveled the world and was a proud mother to multiple small dogs soon after she turned 18. Lucky B. Smith, a male model who recently turned 18, is now expecting a child with his 26 year old girlfriend. Call me crazy, but a girl buying herself a Range Rover for her sixteenth birthday is a tad extreme, as YouTuber Amanda Steele did.

These influences from social media may cause people to act older than they are, or it may be TV and movies. Truthfully, I’m unsure when or where it started, but I do know that it is something more prevalent today than ever.

Walking around the halls of West Essex, you can see that our lives are not too different from social media stars (except for our lack of children). Whether it be disrespecting teachers, students’ attitudes or being decked out in Cartier jewelry, students here seem to believe they are older than they are. Maybe it’s just me, but these things seem a little intense for teenagers to have or be doing.

Why rush through youth?

There are only so many years to feel young, and after you graduate, there is an insane amount of responsibility weighing down on you. That’s the truth.

No matter how stressed you think you are, I can promise you that it will only get worse as you grow up. With the amount of stress and pressure on me now, constantly wishing I could go back to my crayon days, I can only imagine how intense and difficult adulthood will be and wonder why anyone would voluntarily rush to get there.