You know, things are so different than they were when I was 14. Not to give away my EXACT age, but that was several years ago. The King of Pop was just starting his reign; I had never spoken the word "internet"; and cellular phones were bigger than bricks. I grew up in small towns and being sheltered was an advantage. This looks nothing like the world in which my teen lives.
I spoke with my teen today about the advantages and disadvantages of growing up in a small town or a big town. Her response was, in my opinion, smart. She said "Small towns have too much drama. Everyone knows everyone's business. And I would just DIE in a small town! I wouldn't fit in; I would stick out." She has obviously not been sheltered.
It's a big world out there. It used to be easy to shut out anything outside your own borders. Now-a-days, those borders are vague, blurred, or non-existent. Thanks to immediate news reports and instantaneous tweeting, facebooking, and blogging, everybody knows everybody's business. It's not just limited to the small town. Text-messaging, multi-media messaging and email keep you as much involved in the business of someone around the world as around the corner.
The small town I grew up in still exists; and it's still small. Her small town encompasses the globe.
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