Back to School: Tips to Make This Year the Best

I realize that most of have been in school for a week or two already, but I think this topic is still relevant.

School for most kids is marked with homework, bad lunches, boyfriends and girlfriends, car wheels, fights with Mom and Dad, rebellion or the attempt/ thought to rebel, and drama. Most of these things you really don't want to go through. Here are ways to make this year way better:

((( DISCLAIMER! Because I am home- schooled I am not an expert in anything I talk about here, nor do I claim to be. If I have something completely wrong, please note that in the comment section and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!))

1. When you want to argue with Mom
 Teens inherently think (myself included) that since we have made it this far, we must know as much as the parental units. Mix that with crazy emotions and a tendency to want to "tell the truth", we say a bunch of stupid stuff  that hurts yourself and your parent(s).

When you feel like giving a snappy comeback when your mom says you can't go out with friends, please just say "Okay", go to your room and cool off. Your friends will be there forever, and your mom will say yes some other time.

2. That mean girl is asking for it

 We know the type, blonde, perfect, designer outfits, the whole enchilada. She drags her perfect boyfriend all around school, parading him like a trophy. Ugh... It didn't really bother you until she and The Posse decide to turn on you, targeting your "Ew, you got that at Goodwill!" clothes. Your parents don't have enough money to take you clothes shopping and 12 hours at Dairy Queen a week won't pay for a full wardrobe of Gucci. 

Before you say something that will make an enemy for life and also ensure she gets a bad impression of Christians, you can do one of two things. 1. Walk away. When you walk away, she might act like your deaf, but in reality she'll feel stupid. The reason she nags at you is because she wants a reaction. If she doesn't get one, she'll probably leave you alone. 2. Say, "You know, name of mean girl, I really like these clothes. I'll wear what I like and you can wear what you like."

3.You're struggling in school
  
We all know that school isn't easy. School is hard, and it is really easy to doze in class and miss something completely important. Suddenly, you feel like you might as well be thrown back to the fifth grade, because you are totally lost.  

 Before you freak out or have a nervous breakdown or go on one of those really dangerous shopping sprees, do three things: pray, talk to your teacher, and if on of your parents knows anything about the given topic, ask them for help. A couple of days ago, I was freaking out because I couldn't figure out the difference between a chloride atom and a chloride ion, and I thought they didn't mention it in my book, I broke down and had my dad look through it. Ten minutes later he showed me the passage and it was all hunky- dory again. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

4. When you are having a bad day

This morning you woke up all broken out. When you are ready to put on your make up, you find that you younger sister decided to use all our concealer and leave the spatula- emptied tube in you drawer. Great. Then you get to school two minutes late and realize there was that there was that big trigonometry test that you forgot to study for. To put the cherry on the sundae, you got yelled at by the coach because "you didn't have your head in the game".

Wow, you are having a really bad day. Unfortunately, there really is no way to predict when a bad is gonna come or how to stop it before it gets, well, bad. However there are a couple things you can do to make it a little better.

1. I have this sign in my room that says, "When in doubt, 1.Pray 2. Ask Mom 3. Drink Coffee." Being the caffeine addict that I am, this isn't surprising. I think this also applies to bad days, pray, talk to mom, drink a cup of joe.
2.  Johnny Cash's lyrics to one of his songs were "Get rhythm when you get the blues". So true! When you are having a tough day, listen to some music. It really helps, plus it's something to swish around in your head when the coach is yelling at you or the mean girls from problem 2 are at it again.
3. Sitting down and having a couple minutes alone never hurt anyone either. Just take a breather and move on. When the going gets tough, I tell myself this day will be over, and I can go home later and cry my eyes out.
4. Tell your friends, "Hey I'm having a bad day, so if I yell at you, it's not your fault." They could take it a number of different ways, they could laugh, hug you, or pray for you, but I'm pretty sure they'll sympathize.

I hope these tips will help you all! Just remember that if you are fighting with the parents, or the mean girls are doing what they do best, you are having a tough time in school, or it was just a really bad day, God is with always and forever. Even when you feel like the world is crashing down, God is with you. Go give 'em heaven!