Teach Our Children Well

A few weeks ago I was refreshed in my on going quest to raise decent human beings when I saw something I hadn't seen in a very long time. Probably since I was very young.

A little girl, probably three yrs. old, was bouncing around in the back of a mini van in a parking lot. Her exhausted mother was probably staring nostalgia in face while dreaming of her younger days when she didn't have to drive a mini van to tote around all of her husbands "great ideas" or "date nights" or whatever you wish to call them. The days before her ride smelled of spoiled apple juice and her hair was glittered with Cheerios, which she had to pack in a flowery snack container so other mother's thought she cared enough. Finally, the mom crawled out of the driver's seat and opened the sliding door in an attempt to manage her little monster. She told the little girl, at least five times, to hand her a pair of shoes. The little girl stomped her foot and with her fists locked at her sides she yelled "NO!" For the next three minutes the mom calmly tried to reason with the girl and coax her out from behind the back seat. Ultimately this turned into a battle which every mother of a child over the age of one is familiar with. It was the screaming child vs. the stern mother whom no matter how many times she clinched her teeth and said "Get over here... NOW!" while pointing her finger at the floor space in front of her, the child refused. "FINALLY" I thought... when the mom climbed into the back of the van, pulled the little girl out and gave her a much earned swat to her backside. I smiled as though in that very moment Mother's the world over felt a tremble of empowered again. *note to little girl... you can only tell your mother "No" so many times before she has to take action and remind you of the pecking order, you little brat. When it was all said and done, the little girl listened to what her mother told her and harmony (from the 1980's) was restored.

Sometimes it takes a little tough love to bring a child back to reality. Too many kids rule the roost at home, at the grocery store, even at school... whether it's with peers or teachers. There are parents who believe that hitting your kid is wrong, I am one of those parents. Disciplining your child without forever scarring them is completely different. We give children all the power in the world as if it's our duty. We are putting very small human beings in charge of situations which are building the big human beings they will become. We have to teach them self respect, common sense, peace and respect for others, THAT is our duty. It is our duty as parents to control our child until they are mature enough to control themselves. It is our duty as parents to teach our children right from wrong. It is our duty to show them how to love, even if it's a little tough sometimes. As parents we are responsible for what we hand the world.

If your child has such a lack of respect for others, self-respect, peace or common sense that they go to school and bully other children because you're ignoring them at home or worse, paying too much attention to them by beating them when they do something wrong and ignoring them when they do something right then I blame you! If your child lacks self-respect, common sense, peace or respect for others and goes to school with a gun, threatening or taking the lives of other children because they, themselves, were bullied, then I blame you! In the end it is your duty to Teach Our Children Well.

Hypothetical Shotgun

If I were still an overly dramatic teenager I'd shoot myself in the face and thank myself for it immediately. (If you're already offended then I'm talking to you and you need to keep reading.)

After you pack your shell with common-sense powder, over-consideration wad, decency wad, #8 restrain shot, and responsibility-shot wad, write a note to yourself so you never forget why you pulled the proverbial trigger of your hypothetical shotgun. 

Dear Former Me, 

I am really sorry for the hurt that I have caused and now must take it all away. Once I am gone, I will no longer be the girl who is afraid of becoming a better person. I will forever appreciate the things that people do for me and will no longer take them for granted. I will not criticize. I will no longer be the stereotypical female that makes males hard of heart. I will no longer be the female who makes other females ashamed to be categorized along side me. And please burn my pedestal so my own children do not climb upon it.

                                                                                                         With Much Love and Self-Respect,

                                                                         

The New Me

They say "you gotta be the change you wanna see in this world"

Stop the spread of having no grasp of reality for blowing life out of proportion. Terminate having your head in the clouds so your feet can't find the ground. Cease being full of cowardly hate. Break the cycle of pointing the finger and the obsession with blame for no possession of accountability... What a terrible way to exist, as a being with no direction.

It is my job to make sure my daughter has her own ideas and that I teach her the simplicity of being a respectful and respectable person. To know that her actions affect others. I will lead her in the direction of self peace and acceptance so she doesn't have to grapple at straws, making unfortunate decisions.

Fortunately these things can all be gained in time so long as you have a decent role-model in life. If you don't... well, I just explained to you how to become a better person.