“You still watch Disney Channel?” asked the boys in my third period class.

Yes. I do.

When I was younger, Disney Channel was not only my favorite place for entertainment, but seemingly, it was everyone else’s too. The characters were reputable, not babyish, and generally funny. I especially identified with Kim Possible and Ariel as they were the only other redheads I knew before kindergarten.

When I was in third grade, other kids already talked about watching other channels like MTV. I didn’t. These channels kind of terrified me because I thought they were only for big kids, and being the shrimpy child I was, I definitely did not qualify. That year, my youngest sister was born, and as she grew up, my family still watched Disney Channel.

Not only the watching, but the love of Disney had spread through the whole family. One night, after everyone else had gone to sleep, I walked out of my room and saw my dad (a cop who usually spends his Tuesday nights watching WWE) watching the final episode of “Good Luck Charlie.” I looked in his eyes, and I would later swear I saw the faintest glistening of tears in the corners as he said goodbye to the fictional family.

I may not run around in circles wearing a pink t-shirt and pigtails while jumping rope and playing with Barbies, but maybe growing up doesn’t mean watching ‘adult’ TV shows.

Maybe growing up means that it’s not so bad to be in touch with youth.