When we were kids we didn’t worry about anything. We enjoyed our lives to the fullest. As we went on with our lives we had many bumps in the road along the way. Family problems, relationships, grades, college, work, clubs, sports, social life, friends, bullying, the list goes on and on. We were taught many things, history, literature, languages, math, science, but there’s one thing we were never taught: how to handle it all.

It isn’t an easy task, it’s actually quite difficult. Not only does it affect us mentally and physically but it takes a major toll on our sleep. We never have enough time to handle it all. If we don’t keep up with our social life then we lose friends, get depressed, and don’t want to go to school because we feel like it’s a waste of our time. We put up posters up about “Don’t Bully,” but we were never taught how to not act like a bully, how to stand up for yourself, and how to not let the bully’s words or actions affect us. 

Where do we make time to sleep when we go to school for 8 hours, go to sports or clubs, go to work, socialize, then sleep for 3 hours? Do we even have time to eat anymore? 

We’re supposed to know how to handle it all, but we don’t. We struggle with it and we need help being more organized with our lives. It’s understandable and hard, but teachers don’t see it as we do. Some students have to work very hard, taking care of their family, working to pay bills for their family, buying food so they can have dinner and making sure they don’t end up homeless again. Teachers don’t understand that school is not our only responsibility. We have a lot handed to us at once. It’s often unexpected but it happens. What do we do when it happens? Cry? Scream? No. We keep going, keep pushing ourselves until we push ourselves too much and we burn out. We quit everything because it’s all too much at once. 

We breakdown and don’t talk about it. We distance ourselves from everyone. Then what happens? We become antisocial, depressed, suicidal, lonely, helpless, and we don’t cry for help. We cry because of how much pain we’re in. We cry because of the pain we carry on our chests. We cry because we’re worried if our families are going to have a place to sleep and a warm meal to fill their stomachs. We cry because we’re scared if we show any weakness everyone will know. It’s hard, very hard and some of us have to help our families pay medical bills, rent, electricity, water. All the bills we thought we wouldn’t have to pay for until we were out of the house and on our own. 

Sometimes life doesn’t go the way it’s planned. There’s nothing we can do about it. Teach us how to be encouraging, helpful, brave, smart, knowledgeable, caring. The list goes on and on. Start making a change and teach us what we need to know. We want to learn how to be all these things but, how are we supposed to if were never taught?  

We try to be perfect at everything but it never works out that way. It’s harder than we expected. When are we going to be taught? Everyone says, “It’s life.” However, each life is different, so, why not live our lives the best we can? Start teaching your students about what’s happening around the world right now. Teach your students that your peers become your coworkers, your boss, and your friends. Start showing your students what they should live up to. Help them manage their schedule, their homework, their stress, everything they deal with, help them.

Our world is crumbling around us while we all just sit and watch. Global warming, nuclear war, global pandemic, ecological catastrophe, global system collapse, synthetic biology, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, and so many more unknown things. Our home is dying around us, and we can’t even figure out how to take care of our own responsibilities.

We want your help and we want to be happy. We want to learn but the only way change happens if it starts with you. On block days take 10-15 minutes out of your planned schedule and teach us the things we want to know. We’re ready and we need to learn now before we can never learn again. Teach us now before it’s too late.