Parents’ New Year’s Resolutions for their Teens

The New Year has arrived, and, with it, a metaphorical clean slate and 12 months of possibilities. Much has been written about the value of the New Year’s Resolution, and most of us have given them a shot, whether we choose to admit it or not. Rather than the perennial  “lose 10 pounds” or “exercise more,” what if we could make resolutions for our kids? Would it be practical everyday advice, or more philosophical life wisdom? We asked some Tulsa parents what they would resolve for their offspring for 2019. The answer was a little of both.

TS, the mother of a 16-year-old girl, has some simple advice for her daughter that most parents will relate to: “Get up each day and be on time – maybe even early – to school, without an argument or negotiation.”

A high school counselor and the mother of three kids between the ages of 15 and 22, JS has the same advice for all of them: “Focus on growing spiritually closer to God in the New Year. Shed the pop culture message about what is ‘good,’ ‘pretty,’ and ‘popular,” and grow more deeply into who you really are in your heart.”

ME has two daughters at university. For her freshman, she would resolve “to fully enjoy the opportunity of learning new things and meeting new people in college, while not stressing out too much over grades, and to have the freedom to take a class just because it sounds interesting, not because it’s required.”

She wants her junior to have the strength and wisdom to continue to stay true to herself and her beliefs.

A nurse and a mother of two boys, ST wants her 22-year-old who graduates this semester from college to “make a plan to stash away a portion of his paycheck each time in order to build his savings.”

According to ST, her 19-year-old needs to eat healthier and stick to his workout routine in 2019.

“He’s unhappy with the extra pounds he’s added in college,” she notes. Aren’t we all?

JW, a physician and a mother of three, has one child still at home, her 18-year-old daughter, a senior in high school. JW would like for daughter to keep her “long-term goals in sight and remember that sacrifices are necessary to reach those goals.” Good advice for any young person.

Finally, we hear from SD, who is still down in the trenches with elementary and middle school-aged children. For her 9-year-old daughter, she leans toward the practical. SD would like to see her girl start putting away her clean clothes rather than hiding them right back in her dirty laundry basket to avoid putting them away. A clever trick, nevertheless.

Finally, for her 13-year-old son, SD would resolve for him to sit down often with his grandparents and enjoy learning from them about their lives and how they overcame the challenges they encountered.

Whatever your resolutions are for  yourself, or for your children, may 2019 be a year of grace, health and wisdom for all Tulsa kids and their families.

Julie Wenger Watson is a freelance writer who’s worked in all aspects of music promotion. She’s also Co-Director of “Live From Cain’s,” a public radio show pilot.