Grade Inflation and Insincerity

As you know, I'm a teacher.  A junior high teacher.  Many people ask all the time "How do you do it?"  Its not really that difficult.  Junior high kids just want to have someone think they're cool.  They just want to be noticed.  They want to feel important.  In order to achieve this, parents believe they have to avoid criticizing their child and that their child should never feel the sting of disappointment.  Their precious little one should never be left out or not invited.  I get that.  No one wants their child to feel stupid and friendless all the time.  As a result, everyone should get an A.  Children should never be less than a 4.0 student, regardless of how much or little they do.  Its resulted in grade inflation.  An A doesn't mean much anymore because everyone thinks they should get one.  Its no longer an achievement or anything special.  It goes along with the "Everyone gets a trophy because you wore a jersey!" moment we see in kids sports these days.

As I mentioned, junior high kids just want to feel special.  They want to feel loved and important.  Again, as a result of this, they tell everyone and their grandma how much they love them.  They say things like "You're my best friend."  "I love you so much."  "We'll be BFFs 4ever!"   "OHMYGOSHYOULOOKSOSUPERCUTE!"   Any cheesy phrase like that, you'll hear 78 times during the course of a regular junior high day.  They say it to everyone.  Exact same lines.  No one is special.  The words are shared as fast as germs are.

Here's what I've started to notice though.  Its creeping into adult world.  I hear adults saying cheesy lines and wanting as much attention as jr high kids.  Adults are needing to hear  "You're my best friend."  "I love you so much."  "We'll be BFFs 4ever!"  "OHMYGOSHYOULOOKSOSUPERCUTE!" as much as my jr high kids.  Worse yet, they're saying it!  Its the adult version of grade inflation!  And I'm sorry, but when its said over and over, its just becomes insincere.  There's no meaning behind the words when you're the 5th person who's been told "You're so amazing!  I just love you!"..... after five other people on Facebook or at a party or a ward function or the grocery store, for heaven's sake.

Its becoming an annoyance in my world.  Am I being too cynical?  Am I being brutal and hard?  I'd rather hear those words said less frequently and from ONE person who I know means it sincerely than from 16 people on a daily basis who say it to everyone else. 

I blame it all on grade inflation.