This is the summer when I turn 19 years old. After a year of being 18 and finally seeing what it is like to be an "adult," I can't help but feel like the age of 19 lacks the excitement that past ages have given me. New freedoms came with my last three birthdays. When I turned 16, I learned how to drive. At 17, I could get into a rated-R movie on my own. At 18, finally I could say that I am an adult and do adult things, like get a tattoo or buy a lottery ticket. But what new privileges come with being 19? Nothing really, except now you are at an awkward point in your life where you are not quite a teenager anymore, and not yet in your 20s. So as I approach this last year of being a teen, here are 19 reasons why being 19 is one of the most awkward years of your life.
1. This is your final year of being a teenager.
2. When will Taylor Swift or One Direction write a song about being 19?
3. No one really seems to care that you just turned 19.
4. You probably won't even find a good 19th birthday card because 19 is such an awkward birthday.
5. It's so weird being a teenager when a lot of your friends have entered their 20s.
6. Your parents still see you as a pretty much a kid.
7. Articles about being in your 20s and all the awesome things that happen don't really apply to you.
8. You have two long years to go before you finally reach the magical age of 21.
9. On top of that, the next year when you turn 20 doesn't really come with any cool perks either.
10. While still being a teenager, you're already halfway through your college career.
11. At this point in your life, everyone expects you to have your life figured out.
12. And you have no idea what you're doing.
13. You're probably broke at this point.
14. You feel like you're old but still feel like a kid at heart.
15. You're still not 21.
16. You're going to want more adult responsibilities while still wanting to be treated like a kid.
17. You're over all of the "cool" things you got to do during your teen years.
18. You still have one more year before you can officially say that you beat teen pregnancy.
19. Even though you're at an awkward stage, there is always a possibility that this could be one of the most fun years of your life.
Even though 19 is an awkward age, there is still the chance to have fun before you reach you 20s and have to really learn how to be an adult. In one year, I'm going to be able to say that I survived all those years of being a teenager and I still have a whole life of experiences waiting to happen. After all, you're only 19 once.
