Putting
the Story Pieces Together for Teen Girl Faces Time in the Sand
One
Selfie swipe will instantly show me images and words with as brief an
engagement as I wish. There is no debate; it's not a relationship. It can show
me ignorance, intimidation or threats, bombast, or absolute fakery. It is normal to favor only cosmetic standards
with plastic interventions and sensational spectacles where regular common
everyday things and people no longer matter....
Is
this what communication has flat lined to … short term attention spans,
immediate reaction, fear and anxiety and judgment calls without facts?
(excerpts from Teen Girl Faces Time in the Sand)
The
previous three blogs have summarized this story and explained the challenge of
portraying time and the rational for using visual language and symbolism.
1.
How to stop social media from taking advantage of a rash and brash teenage
brain still in development personified here as a Giant Clown Face of epic
proportions. (blog 1)
2.
How to start looking at value of Time and power of choice as a super power tool
to avoid making bad mistakes that may affect or change the total Time Line. (blog 2)
3.
How to use diagrams or symbols as a base for discussion of growing up in a mass media
world, of visualizing strong social forces, and structuring experience of
time. (blog 3)
Now
there is time to share a few closing personal words.
There
is no simple answer to what is a good life because it makes a unique symbol for
each of us within our circumstances. As an old person I have the privilege of
looking back at my time line and breathing a sign of satisfaction and relief.
My young brain was never assaulted by a social media clown face. Now young people need to be warned about the
dangers of growing up too early in a mixed-up media's brew with adult
lifestyles and attitudes with no defense from their immature brain development
drawn naturally to affection and rewards.
The change is made so much more profound when
I fondly remember my teen years. The poster on my bedroom wall was of Dr.
Albert Schweitzer, who celebrated success as a musician, writer, humanitarian,
and philosopher; and, yet decided as a doctor to open clinics in the poorest
villages of Africa. His photo with his
large drooping mustache was the only one that inspired me.
My
pop icon wore poodle skirts to her ankles covered with bobby socks. Gyrating
was jiving…a good exercise. Drinking and smoking were simply not permitted and
to talk back to parents was a matter of being sent to your room without
supper. Only once it happened to me and
the guilt of disrespecting my mother still lingers sixty years later. School
and good report cards were a serious responsibility with parent's pride in a
job well done was the best star of all.
So
how in the world did this all change?
The
true tragedy is that young girls with their nascent beauty and nurturing spirit
now need to be protected from losing their innocence by trying to become
desirable "like me" adults before their brain is able to make
deductive judgment calls or take on adult responsibilities.
The
deeper tragedy is that there seems to be a tolerance to allow any young people
to use their cell phones to present a falsehood to the world and still get
applause even if it's fake.
What kind of lesson about morality does this teach
them? What does it mean to manipulate truth
on purpose ? How will this carry on into other activities and beliefs about
society and norms that are the very fabric of culture and civilization?
It
is a hard exercise to look at all the possible addends in a potential Life
experience, and see how a few beginning years (7 teen years) can interfere,
derail or even cause death to young people's spirits. The time for youth is
short enough to explore, self discover , experience AHA moments, take pride in
learning and achieving in daring to climb the mountain of achievement because parents will be
their cushion when they fall.
This
main theme in of this story is to hold and respect time as if you can hold it
in your hand, invisible but all powerful in its choices. To better manage the
passage of time, there are numerous pictures or symbols for consideration.
Another
recurring theme is that it is not the teenage girl's fault if a Mass Media Circus influences her young rash and brash adolescent brain and corrupts the
potential of adulthood before its time.
The
moral or lesson is not to give away your privacy to a public sphere but to
protect your independent Self, separate from media rule or mob control. There is no pretense of any kind allowed based on predatory influence.
Interestingly,
a little damselfly plays the role of life's fragility yet respect. Her nymph
larva is about well prepared survival in a pond environment versus an
adolescent feeding off social media.
But, how sad, that this abnormal transmutation continues to disrupt the adolescent
nature into an adult, based on social media criteria? This book addresses one way to possibly divert or contain it.
How
terribly sad when you do a worldwide web search with the words teen girls, and
after the first 3 titles about clothes, shoes and accessories; the next items
are about real teens twerking, why teen girls crave older partners and a
Facebook page for hot teen selfie shots! Even pornographers have found that they can get more clicks and views with extreme encounters involving with teenage girls and boys.
As
well, it is time to pay more attention to beginning research that finds
"social media use can make profound changes to the brain in similar ways
that drug addiction can…receiving likes on the internet releases dopamine in
the brain.This creates a sense of pleasure. Similar triggers for this
experience includes eating chocolate or winning money."
In
the last chapter as Kit wanders down to the beach where she retraces her sand
drawings, she realizes the power of Self and protection of Choice. She comes to terms that many things in her
past are not her fault. Her story serves
as a warning to young teens not to fall prey to social media pressures and
addictive impulses.
The
story concludes with how to use personal cell phones to set boundaries and
interact more positively with the social media and environment. Also, there are 10 separate exercise to download and practice some of the concepts outlined in the story.
Check out Teen Girl Faces Time in the Sand.
Your questions, comments and concerns about teen girls in a mass social media culture are always welcome. Together we can work on a resolution, if this matter bothers you, too.
Sincerely,
Annemarie
You
understand that the future only appears as a vision and today is the only time
you have to react to anything. What if you had the power to connect to the
future to help direct your present actions to fulfill that future? I wonder what kind of choices you'd make
….would they be the same?
But
what if there is some kind of super power tool to help make better choices to
take you into adulthood? (excerpts)
