The current issue of GROUP Magazine features a study on what Christian kids today fear most. For the next few weeks, we will be posting individual students’ responses that are insightful but not featured in the original article. To read the full article, subscribe to GROUP Magazine today!
Fear of Moving to Another Town or State
By Timmy Sutton
No matter how adults spin it for you, moving isn’t easy. You can call it “a new start” or a “better opportunity,” but moving is the most jostling, treacherous, and terrifying trial an adolescent can experience. The possibilities represented by a fresh start are overshadowed by the changes that accompany them.
I recently moved from South Texas to Arizona right before my junior year of high school. I was established in Texas. I was comfortable. Arizona was new, and despite what I knew the move could offer us educationally, economically, and spiritually, I was still scared and angry. I was afraid of loneliness, I was angry at God, and I was terrified of losing the relationships I’d built. Most of all, I was afraid of rejection.
Even a year after our move, most of my fears haven’t gone away. But I’ve learned to look towards the solid things in my life, like my faith and my family, as opposed to the turbulent ones, like my location and circumstances. And I’m much more stable because of it. ◊
Timothy, this insight alone is powerful for all of us: “But I’ve learned to look towards the solid things in my life, like my faith and my family, as opposed to the turbulent ones, like my location and circumstances. And I’m much more stable because of it”
Well said. Well written. Thank you!
Thank you so much! Change is something that is great conceptually for most adolescents, but when it actually comes I think many have trouble with it. We spend so much time waiting to change, from boys to men, from girls to women, from what’s comfortable to greener pastures, that we forget that change is difficult. I just hope that everyone can find the level of stability I have through my family and faith.