Heather Stemen

Adolescence by Dr. Seuss

On a fine breezy day,

near Aprils end,
I began to recall
everything I had read.

The very first note

that stood out in my mind
was the identity that
Erikson insist that we find.

He said it would be hard

if our ego got bruised,
so we must keep it positive
or we risk being confused.

This could be helpful

for a foe or a friend
that is at the age
Erikson said it begins.

The very second note

that stood out in my mind
was how something called puberty
could make a teen very unkind.

Is it the hormones?
The parents? Or peers?
It could be the brain
thats been hindered by beer.

It is important to see
how your teens are affected
so that you can step in
if dangers expected.

The very third note

that stood out in my mind
was how white matter in the brain
must carefully bind.

The corpus callous,

or however they say,
is a large bundle of fibers
that connect the two sides of your brain!
The rate of every teens callous
is on different paths,
so one must be patient
when teaching them math.

The very fourth note

that stood out in my mind
was how being yourself
should be done with some pride.

There is something they call

the steam of the self
wait, no,
thats for trains you put on a shelf.

Either way, this esteem

is so important you see,
so parents and teachers,
be sure you perceive.

The very fifth note

that stood out in my mind
was how boys have the power
and girls are just kind.

So girls cant fix cars

and boys cant hold babies
Who made these rules?
This is just crazy.

You should never let anyone

say you can or you cant.
Share that with your friends!
Go on a rant!

The very sixth note

that stood out in my mind
was that the hush-hush
needs somewhere to confide.

Kids know more about cars

than they do their own bodies
and all that it does
when your doing the naughty.
So a goal here would be
to ed-you-ma-cate them
so they get the whole picture
and theres no mistakin.

The very seventh note

that stood out in my mind
was Kohlbergs 6 stages
of feeling just fine.

Well, not just feeling fine,

or just finely feeling,
but the process one goes through
while their morally reasoning.

Theres a Pre-, a Con-, and a Post-

level they say
one must go through them all
to be a good person some day.

The very eighth note

that stood out in my mind
was the families, oh the families
and the love, how sublime.

Now these people are

the biggest part of your life
your mother, father, brother, sister
and their struggles and strifes.

So parents take heart,

be soft but be firm,
your kids are just kids
that are trying to learn.

The very ninth note

that stood out in my mind
was all the besties
and the dates and best times!

Friends are the best

and some are best friends
but you have to be careful
some like rules that they bend.
Theyll bend till they break,
and that could be a worry,
so pay close attention
just in case you have to get out in a hurry.

The very tenth note

that stood out in my mind
was how schools, in particular
take up a lot of your time.

You start really small,

then go up to a 12!
Then theres something called college
where you learn how to do learning yourself!

There are smart kids, and short kids,

kids with gifts, some are silly,
but we are all here to learn
no matter if your Brit, Cal or Billy.

The very eleventh note

that stood out in my mind
was how getting a job
is quite the find.

Once school is done,

you must achieve, achieve, and achieve, and achieve
so you better get started
procrastination is not keen.

The pressures of money and status

can drive someone sad
so have some really real goals
to help you stay very glad.

The very twelfth note

that stood out in my mind
is how everyones different
and that is just fine!

Theres a status thats social,

but economic in nature,
it goes low to high
but should not influence your wager.
Theres things called poverty, ethnicity,
immigration status and such
and theres TV and games
but, no matter, in the future, you can still become much!

The very thirteenth note

that stood out in my mind
was that, in the end,
we all have problems sometimes.

Is it your body? Or mind?

Or perhaps is it social?
Is it inside, or outside?
What is this problems focal?

So you have this problem,

or this problem has you,
but you must learn to cope with it
so you can do all that you do!

So from theories, to series, to wearies, to drearies,

from brains, to gains, to strains, to chains
from mothers to brothers, to sisters and misters,
we all must remember, were caught in this twister.

So be there for people

who need you around
notice and care
and DO make a sound.

So now at the end

of this fine breezy day
Im glad that I had said
so much that I wanted to say.

THE END

Picture From: http://www.birthdayexpress.com/p/90442/dr-seuss-lunch-napkins