If you came of age in the 1980s, as I did, you’re likely familiar with the movie Lethal Weapon. Two mismatched police detectives unexpectedly find themselves partnered up: Martin Riggs, the loose cannon with revenge on his mind, and Roger Murtaugh, the older, wiser man of the force, counting the days until retirement. When I saw this film for the first time in high school, I identified with the loonier of the two, Riggs. He might be a little crazy, but man, he was fun. Also, easy on the eyes. When I watched the film recently, however, my sympathies had changed. Today, I’m more in Murtaugh’s corner. Mostly because I find myself, as a middle-aged mom, inadvertently quoting his signature line, “I’m too old for this shit,” on a regular basis.
I used to be a risk-taker. But now, I just feel too old to bother. The potential negative consequences of a risky decision, like the loss of financial or social stability, seem too great to bear. I have a mortgage to pay, for goodness’ sake! I have a kid to raise. And the positive outcomes? Well, they just don’t seem as compelling as they once did. But I can’t help wondering why my approach has changed so much. Has my age and place in society somehow affected the way I’m perceiving and pursuing risk? What’s changed in me since my crazy, risk-taking teenage years?
The Teen Species Jonathan is not the kid you think of when someone mentions your typical risk-taking teenager. At 18, he’s an above-average student, secretary of the student council and a star player on his school’s soccer team. He’s friendly and well liked across his school’s diverse social strata. Everyone in his life expects him to do great things. And he seems fairly unaffected by the weight of those expectations. He’s the kind of kid who makes the teen years look good.
But even for Jonathan, adolescence isn’t an easy process. It’s a volatile time, both physically and emotionally. Abigail Baird, a brain researcher at Vassar College, says what you see on the outside is happening in the teenage brain as well.
“You see that explosive growth and the gawkiness that comes with it on the outside during adolescence — kids suddenly shooting up with long, clumsy arms and legs,” she says. “What shouldn’t be surprising, then, is that there’s that same gawkiness when we’re talking about the brain, too. It’s not an exaggeration to say things are exploding in terms of brain growth.”
