“You’re just a little kid. What do you know?” 

“You’re too young to talk about that.” 

“You’re too naive to make your own decisions.” 

Far too often, adults, especially parents, claim that young adults are incapable of making good choices and showing signs of maturity. This is because of one number: their age. 

There are so many numbers in life. Birthdays, Social Security numbers, phone numbers, credit card numbers, test grades. Age is just one more item on the list. It is an indicator that measures how long a person has been alive. Nothing more. 

I am a 16-year-old girl and I know how to drive. I am aware of the negative implications of speeding and breaking traffic laws, so I choose not to make risky decisions.

Adulthood is not a ticket to maturity. There are middle-aged people that do not have the basic common sense of a high school student. There are employed adults that are not committed to their jobs and struggle to find stability. There are parents that have fragile relationships with friends and family because they do not know how to act in society. These are signs of immaturity despite being part of an older age group. 

Just because a person hasn’t lived for a very long time, it does not mean that they are not mature. The experiences that a person adds to their collection influences a person’s mindset and perspective towards life, not age.

This can be observed in industries across the board, from science and aviation to music. 

Fiery, determined little people view life through a unique lens, not an immature one. They are filled with fresh, new ideas to make the world a better place. 

For instance, 21-year-old Hannah Herbst, a Florida resident, created a method to generate electricity through ocean water, so that countries without electricity will have the chance to utilize the resource. Young adults just like Herbst are capable of designing revolutionary inventions that can potentially change the outlook for the human race. 

In order to craft such innovations, these young people need commitment, focus and determination since the ideas they get are against the norm. They need to be mature to achieve this level of intellect. If adults do not let such ardent individuals voice their perspectives and ideas, then our world is at risk for losing life changing innovations for the betterment of the human race. 

Adults and supposedly wiser people should embrace younger people’s contributions and ideas. Members of the youth are capable of developing a unique and thorough understanding of the world at a young age.

Coppell High School junior Adi Patel is working towards getting his pilot license. He has a goal of joining the United States Air Force Academy after he completes high school. As of fall 2020, the acceptance rate for the United States Air Force Academy is 13%, so getting into this program will take some degree of talent, dedication, commitment and maturity. Making this decision as a junior in high school also takes maturity. 

In the music industry, younger rappers who have been through many tough situations developed a sense of maturity as they know what hardship is and what wrong decisions can lead to. 

Prominent rapper Colson Baker, commonly known as Machine Gun Kelly, was bullied throughout his childhood because his father suffered from depression and was unemployed frequently. The struggles Baker faced as a boy motivate him to give a good life to his daughter. Baker understands kindness and true love. Towards the beginning of his career, even though Baker was only 20 years old and earning money through rapping, he worked at Chipotle because he knew having a stable source of income is important based on his past experiences. 

Maturity should be observed through a person’s actions, thoughts or philosophy; not their age. 

Parents often think that younger people need their guidance and advice for every single task. They tend to justify their reasoning by arguing that they want to ensure their children are safe. However, this causes parents to not keep an open mind. Adults have the tendency to ignore or downsize younger people’s opinions because of the idea that they are younger and are supposedly immature. 

I understand that parents and other adults have the responsibility to ensure that their children are not going in the wrong direction and engaging in risky behaviors. But adults should not make a judgement or close their mind when younger people are voicing their opinions. 

Follow Varshitha (@varshitha1128) and @CHSCampusNews on Twitter.