As part of my summer job, I go on service-learning projects and road trips with teenagers. I get to spend a large amount of time with them, learning about them as a group and as individuals. Technically I’m still a teenager myself, being nineteen. However, there is something different about the middle/high school years of development. They’re young and naïve, yet wise and experienced at the same time. They have a wealth of tools for knowledge that many adults didn’t have as teenagers.

Teenagers as a whole are a largely underrated group. Adults don’t give them the credit they deserve for being smart and caring individuals. Their ability to become leaders is astounding. When they are given the opportunity to rise above and succeed, the usually do. However, when they are set up to fail and you carry low expectations for them, they will deliver in exactly that way. The thing about teenagers is that you have to hold high expectations and place your confidence in them. You have to accept the fact that they will fall short sometimes; it’s essential to learning. But they’ll get it, and when they do, they will shock you in ways you never expected.

This week, I went on a week-long service-learning road trip with eleven teenagers. It’s planned completely by two teenagers themselves; they set up the overnight hosts, the projects, the meals, the fun activities, all of it. It’s hard and it’s intense; as a teenager, and as a staff. Lots of driving, late nights and early mornings. Emotions run high quickly.

Going into this trip, I expected to be exhausted but have a bit of fun. However, what I ended up with was extreme exhaustion, really tough moments, and a thumb with four stitches; yet I had the time of my life. I knew these teens would experience changes in themselves, but I didn’t expect the same for me.

I did this trip as a teenager; I thought I knew what to expect. But what’s amazing about this trip is that each one isn’t like the other. I thought I knew what I would experience, but I was way off. I learned things about myself that I didn’t expect to; I learned that I’m braver than I give myself credit for. I learned my limits and pushed myself beyond them. I also learned I’m more of an adult than I believed. I went into this trip nervous and reserved, yet I came out more confident than ever and proud of myself and my teens.

Working with teenagers is a love/hate relationship. It’s hard and trying, yet it’s the most rewarding experience I’ve had. This has been the hardest, most fun summer I’ve ever had. I can’t even bare to think about returning to my boring cashier job in a month. This job is not only at a place I call home and with people I call family, but it’s fun, exciting, and rewarding. So the next time you hit a roadblock and don’t know what to do, maybe think about asking a teenager in your life. Their answer might surprise you.