A thought occurred to me today, as it has every time I witness teenage drama.... Thank you Lord Jesus that I am no longer a teenager and no longer wrapped up in the day to day drama that is a constant for them. Don't get me wrong, adult women have their own form of drama. But when it happens now, I can take a step back and see it for what it really is. And I can remove myself because my whole self worth is not wrapped up in how others perceive me or what they think of me. Lord knows, I was completely controlled by that when I was in high school. I was very lucky that I was friends with many different types of people back then... preps, geeks, artists, musicians, jocks, nerds, rednecks, etc. But I always worried about what everyone thought of me... all the time. It consumed me. Do I fit in with them? Do they like me? Are my clothes right? What if I say something stupid and they laugh at me?
As I have aged, (and boy have I aged), I don't care so much. I like who I am now and I can make the decision that I'm not going to get bogged down in it. So I try to just step away and remove myself.
Now sometimes drama finds us, no matter what we do. But we don't have to feed it and allow it to grow stronger and let it take root deep in our friendships. And when those times happen to come, and we get so frustrated with other people, that it's all we can do to not dive headfirst into the vat of stress, drama, and heartache, I have to make myself stop and remember what's important.
I am to love those people as God loves them.... and me. And I am to show them that love.
You know when we say things like, "well, I mean this in all Christian love and kindness, but she is dumber than a rock. Bless her heart!".... we say it's in love... but is that Christ-like love? Are we treating others as God has treated us? And are we setting proper examples for our children, showing them how to treat others?
Anyway, kids... when drama abounds, know this. It doesn't go away. It will always be a part of life. But you make it what it is.... you decide how much life it will have. You can feed it and allow it to grow, consuming every inch of your life. Or you can step back, see it for what it really is and refuse to be a part of it.
Choose love over drama. You'll be much happier in the long run.
Oh, and many times, when we are older... when someone brings up the high school drama... we rarely remember the person that was so important to us at the time and usually responsible for causing it all.
This too shall pass.
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