Amanda

Written by Likhit Sethi, Sketch by Stuti Rawat
'Amanda' by Robin Klein is a poem about different feelings, emotions and reactions an adolescent expresses when their parents or elders try to teach them the right thing.
 

Made by Stuti Rawat

Just like all teenagers, Amanda feels that her parents and elders always restrict her, keep nagging at her and instruct her what to do as if she were still a small kid. In the poem, Amanda’s mother instructs her to not do certain things. Amanda ignores her mother and imagines herself being a mermaid, free to do anything she wishes. Her mother keeps on asking her if she has completed the tasks she had to finish. Neglecting her mother’s words, she feels it would have been better if she were an orphan who could roam the streets and enjoy freedom from the elders nagging at her. Her mother tells her to not eat chocolate and mentions that they would cause acne because she knows Amanda wouldn’t just listen to her. Then she irritatedly asks her to at least look at her when she is speaking. Disregarding her mother, she pictures herself to be Rapunzel and vows to never let her hair down. The poem ends with her mother ordering her to stop sulking and being moody because it would make everyone think she was nagging her.
 

Teenagers feel that their parents or elders control them and keep on badgering them but in reality parents and elders scold us (or what we feel, chivvy us) because they want us to do the correct thing, the precise thing. They do this to teach us the right thing which they have learnt from the experiences of their lives. We should respect them and thank them for what they are doing and stop sulking and back answering. Maybe we ourselves would scold our children when we become parents and it is quite possible that they would feel the same as we do now, so it would be better that we don’t become a victim of our age and instead try to understand it and grow accordingly.

We asked our classmates to mention some of the restrictions that are imposed on them by their parents.Tarang Jain: Solo trip
Heer Rajani: Don’t watch this show I heard it’s not that good
Vinamra Jain: Don’t play too much online games
Priyansh Jain: Trip with friends
Neel Jadia: Restricted some movies
Hitanshi Shah: Nightstay
Neel Jadia: No internet connections
Akash Goyal: Don't eat junk food the whole day
Koshika Jhavar: Buying a personal phone
Neel Jadia: No personal phones
Likhit Sethi: No personal phones
Heer Rajani: Don’t use your phone much
Aaditya Shukla: No phones
Pranav Dubey: Computer games
Somya Agrawal: No personal phone  
Priyansh Jain: Screen time restrictions
Neel Jadia: I am expected to practise 'Yoga' every day
Vinamra Jain: Play only for as many hours equal to hours you have studied
Tarang Jain: Too much time on any gadget
Atharv Rangole: Screen- time restrictions
Heer Rajani: Exercise everyday even during lockdown

What do you think about these restrictions? How do you respond to them?
Priyank Surana: If we are not placed with some restrictions we might end up as gangstas'!
Neel Jadia: Readily accept them
Vinamra Jain: Sometimes we listen sometimes we don’t
Divya Verma: Sulk about it but still listen to them
Tarang Jain: Argue
Likhit Sethi: Accept it...no other option I believe
Heer Rajani: When they call us to their room it’s like ‘no not again’
Akash Goyal: First I ask them why, then if they allow, it’s good otherwise their eyes are enough
Vinamra Jain: Those big eyes are enough
Pranatpal Sharma: These restrictions are necessary or else frankly, I would keep playing games on my phone the whole day.
Somya Agrawal: Sometimes listen other times don’t react
Priyansh Jain: Try to prove our point
Ummul Roshan: Plead in front of parents and then lose
Heer Rajani: Say nothing and just nod the head as always they are right
Advaita Shukla: Sigh and move on
Neel Jadia: In Indian culture, everything said by parents and elders is to be listened and obeyed
Priyank Surana: East or west parents are the best
Pranav Dubey: Listen to your parents and get the rewards ;)
Aaditya Shukla: It’s our duty to obey our parents. That's the only way we can please our parents without much effort.
Heer Rajani: At the end it is good for us only
Vinamra Jain: "Arre yaarr!!" this is my reaction sometimes
Priyansh Jain: Sometimes we tell them that our friend’s parents have allowed them
Neel Jadia: There are many sacrifices our parents have made for us

You can also participate in the discussion and express your views in the comments below.