Teen Talk
Summer Workin’ Had Me a Blast
By Jessica Small
It starts with desperation. The feeling of “but I have to have it.” Then there’s a sharp flash of reality, while the individual contemplates the value of their desire and its cost. That’s when the action starts…
I reach for my purse, keeping my eyes glued to the menu board above the Starbucks Coffee counter. “One tall, unsweetened Tazo Passion tea,” I say, as my fingers pinch the zipper on my purse and slip the compartment open. Out of familiar habit, I reach in and locate my wallet.
Success. I lift it out and let my eyes shift to the inside of my wallet, as the barista calls out the price for my precious, hand crafted beverage. That’s when I realize I’m down to ten dollars. As shivers tingle down my spine, I hand over a portion of my valued bills. Then, almost solemnly, I slowly march to the pick-up counter.
Was it worth it? “How could it be?” I question. But then, my bright pink tea slides across the counter into my hand. The condensation drips down my skin. I reevaluate. “This was definitely worth it,” I think.
This scenario is so common; it’s as if being short on money is a permanent teenage quality! The solution to this problem sounds simple: just grovel to your parents for a few bucks every day and hope you get lucky! Just kidding. We need a job. However, getting hired is a lot harder than one might think! Beyond the application process, the teenager has to display maturity, reliability, and definite interest. Not to mention, we have very little experience!
Adults- just imagine how you felt the first time you tried to break into the workforce. It might seem simple in comparison to the complications of adult life, but at the time it was definitely a struggle for you, too.
Teenagers are blossoming adults. We desire a more comfortable lifestyle, like adults, but are limited by our age and “school-to-free time” ratio. While many kids and pre-teens volunteer and attend summer camp, teens want to work and make a paycheck.
The summer is luckily a great time for teens to make a little extra cash, so that’s exactly what we do! From life guards and camp counselors to busboys and cashiers, we do whatever we can to accumulate money to maintain us school-year long.
I have been incredibly fortunate both this summer and last to have been given the opportunity to be an intern at a medical research center while on summer break. Not only does it give me valuable experience and teach me usable job skills, but I get a little extra money.
So while all you youngsters enjoy the summertime sunshine, and all you adults scramble to get your children from point A to point B of their new agendas, know that we teens will be waiting patiently for job opportunities. Or, we will be fortunately hired and working our summer vacation away. So cut us some slack, will ya?! We might be your kid’s camp counselors or your cashiers, but we’re on summer break too!
Jessica Small is a rising senior at Wellington High School. She is the Editor-in-Chief of her school’s online publication, whswave.com. She is enrolled in rigorous courses at WHS and aspires to study journalism and business in college. She is passionate about her high school dance team and is also the current president of thinkPINKkids.