To be or not to be, that is the question…the question of maturity. What really is maturity? Is it age? Is it a good friend? Is it to be well behaved? I hear all the time in the hallways “You’re so immature! I’m going to get new friends!” I have been known to say that myself. But lately I have learned a lot about maturity and what it means to me.

What is more important to people, being a good friend or always straight-faced? It varies from person to person.  For me most days I need a friend, no matter how dumb they might act.

Last week I was having a really bad day and it only got worse as the day went on. A friend of mine did not know and decided that at lunch it would be a good idea to put a purple bunny marshmallow on my seat so when I sat down it would not only stick to my khaki shorts but get purple marshmallow gunk all over my backside. Real mature right? But after I got home and had changed clothes, taken a shower and washed the bad day off all I could think of was the effort that he put forth to play a stupid immature prank on me. He had made sure someone was distracting me while he placed the trap and while I sat down so I wouldn’t see it. And honestly, who thinks of not only bringing to school but putting a purple bunny marshmallow on a lunchroom seat. And mine of all the seats in the lunchroom pull the prank on. It had to be mine. It happened to be mine. He chose mine because he knew most days I would just flick him in the ear and move on my merry way. How much maturity did it take him to come to this decision and think out his plot from start to finish? As I thought about it, that stupid little marshmallow made my day a little brighter. He was just being a good friend in the end. And that shows real maturity. He later apologized (laughing) for putting a marshmallow on my seat that stuck to my shorts, I proceeded to flick him in the ear and it was all back to normal but although the actual act was immature his image in my mind has switched to a slightly higher level than it was. Naturally he lost that the next day when he told me I had to go home and change because we were both wearing brown polos. Sorry people, there is no excuse for being shallow.

So take a good look at people before you call them immature. Because maybe they are halfway there, it’s very possible that while their actions might be immature their motives might be pure. Not always, but it’s better to think things through and not say something about them you might regret rather than jumping directly to conclusions—or flicking them in the ear. Think things through.

That is my opinion on this rather extensive topic.

See you on the other side.