Editor's Letter
A couple of weeks ago, I turned 20 - I know, Happy Birthday to me - and I couldn't stop thinking that my teen years are actually over. Here I am, officially entering the adult world. However, I was (not) surprised to find that neither blowing out my birthday candles nor waking up the next morning made me feel any different; It was just the same old me. As always.
If there was one thing that got on my nerves as a teenager, it was the common phrase: "You're young. When you're my age, you will understand."
O h m y G o d.
A phrase that has no meaning and offers no particular explanation either. I remember having long conversations with people older than myself, and whenever I happened to have a different opinion on a subject, this phrase just seemed to always find its way back to me. And then we would get to the best part: "He is a teenager, it's in his nature to always disagree."
Having seen and spoken to adults from all around the world, I always find myself trying to imagine them in their teenage years, in order to understand who they truly are and get an insight into their way of thinking. I know, it might sound peculiar, however, I find that a person's teenage-self is the purest form of one's personality.
The so-called "teenage years" are indeed an endless journey of experimentation; it might be finding and understanding your sexuality, or whether or not you like Nutella. However, do people really 'become adults' or is that another one of society's tricks for people to conform and give them the illusion of being in control? People change. Opinions change. But i tend to believe that a person's personality, life and role in society is not defined merely by a date of birth.
This issue is about treating teenagers as equals and allowing us to be reminded of their journey of experimentation, dreams and aspirations for the future - before creating dull CVs and looking for a job in the 'real world'. It's a glimpse into a different way of thinking, a different aesthetic, a different but all too familiar world.
Marios Mystidis
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