Everyone tells new parents that babies are hard but teenagers are harder. Which is not true and a monstrous thing to say to someone already drowning in exhaustion and anxiety. Toddlers are harder than infants, but you only realize that later after the smoke clears and you have a second baby. Foot soldiers on active duty on the front line have it harder than parents, but that's the only harder job that comes to mind. Actually, being a cop today is probably harder than parenting. What drives people to tell this smug and ugly lie about teenagers to new parents? Selective memory? Jealousy?

Our society is terribly confused about who teenagers are. Teenagers are people, grown people. If you are  a control freak or hell bent on clinging to the days your children desperately needed you, you may think of teenagers as more difficult than babies. If you've bought into the idea that intelligence can only be properly nurtured through 13 years marched lock-step through the industrial military education complex, you may find yourself the proud parents of difficult teenagers. If you think of teenagers as contrary, unhappy, disdainful, and difficult you may find yourself the proud parents of difficult teenagers.

The teenagers I know are not like that. They are a whole lot like ordinary people. They are reasonable, likable, intelligent, trustworthy, capable, and one ginormously huge site easier to deal with than babies. And I don't mean just my kids. I am speaking of the entire community of teenagers I know.

Homeschooling teenagers requires consideration of a few new issues: sex, drugs, admitting your children are becoming adults and shifting your behavior accordingly. It is scary to think of new young adults out making dicey choices in the world. It is also scary to be a new young adult out making dicey choices in the world. Its also scary being an old adult facing difficult choices. All we can do is love one another and cooperate. If 13 years of parenting hasn't already taught you about love and cooperation, you're probably past help.

Parenting teenagers means everything gets easier. Traveling is easier, going out to dinner is easier, shopping is easier, being alone with your spouse is easier, planning, living, playing, everything is easier! Plus, you get to watch more interesting movies, share funnier jokes, and stay out later. What's not love?

In our society, the more haunting question is: who is not to love? Often our answer is teenagers and that is the biggest problem they face.