Letters to My Teenagers - Indiana Jones and the search for self esteem

being a teenager is a lot like an Indiana Jones adventure

Intro: I always thought that I would be a "cool dad" to my teenagers because I would remember what it's like to go through that difficult and exciting period of life.  The problem is that while I find many things improve with age, I do find myself having a harder time remembering what it's like to be fifteen.  I'm worried that if I wait until my kids really are teenagers, I won't remember a thing.  So I will capture my thoughts while I still have them in a series of posts called "Letters to My Teenagers".

This post requires some homework first.  It's not hard, you just have to watch a movie.  If you haven't seen an Indiana Jones movie, go download Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.  Playing Lego Indiana Jones on the Wii doesn't count.

Being a teenager is like you're Indiana Jones - and you're on a perilous adventure fraught with puzzles and villains and if you "choose wisely" you will obtain the Holy Grail.  And the Holy Grail for teenagers is self esteem- being truly happy with who you are and where you are going.

During every Indiana Jones adventure, he faces danger around every corner.  During this adventure, Indy faces two tough challenges:  Friends and Hormones.

Friends:

Indiana Jones never departs on an adventure alone, especially one so big as the search for the Holy Grail.  He always takes some friends with him.  These friends serve as a great help and support for Indy.  They accept him for who his is, are always happy to see him, and they always have fun together.  The problem is, sometimes Indy relies on his friends a little too much.  Instead of charting his own course to the holy grail and using his own internal compass, he leans on the judgement and "compasses" of his friends and ends up lost in the desert.  Just like Indy, these friends are also searching for the Holy Grail and sometimes they will get lost and try to take Indy with them.

Indy needs to be careful not to compare himself to his friends.  Each of his friends have strengths and weaknesses, and just because one of Indy's friends is the best swordsman around, doesn't mean he's better than Indy.  Indy needs to remember he is the best with the whip.  Sometimes the adventure gets so crazy, that it's hard to tell what is really a strength and what is really a weakness!  Something that Indy envy's in a friend, like his friends loud voice, could actually get them caught by the cannibals in the jungle.

You also have to watch out for those friends who want the Holy Grail so bad, that they are willing to stand on  your shoulders to get out of the snake pit, then leave you behind.

Bottom Line:  Choose good friends for your adventure, but don't rely on them to be the "compass" in your journey, and never compare yourself to them, just work to be the best adventurer you can.

Hormones:

Oh Indy.  Those girls are always distracting him from the Holy Grail.  This part of the adventure is like the cartoon "Alladin".  When Alladin enters the cave of wonders, he finds is filled with beautiful diamonds and rubies.  He knows he is supposed to take only the lamp, but he can't help himself to one beautful ruby.  When he grabs the ruby first, the cave starts to implode, and nearly costs Alladin the lamp and his life.  In hindsight, what Alladin should have done was grab the lamp first, then use the lamp to get you all the rubies he wanted.  Girls are like rubies - those hormones pumping through your veins may make you think you want them more than the magic lamp (the holy grail), when really you should grab the holy grail first then use it to attract the opposite sex.

Hormones are also like the poison drinks that some of his enemies slip to Indiana Jones without him knowing.  After Indiana takes a drink, he finds he has a hard time thinking and concentrating on his journey.  He knows he is supposed to be progressing in his journey, but finds his thoughts inexplicably cloudy.

Also, watch out for those of the opposite sex who want the Holy Grail so badly, they don't care if they side with the Evil Germans to get there.  That's a whole different blog post...

Bottom line:  Find happiness in yourself first and beware of unexplainable emotions and thoughts.    

Enjoy your adventure, just like Indy enjoys his adventures.  Hold true to your internal compass to navigate the challenges of friends and hormones and you too shall possess the Holy Grail.