Kids Today
"What is wrong with kids today!"
The elderly woman in the checkout line said, eyeing the child screaming about a candy bar that he wanted while his parents sheepishly tried to dissuade him from the behavior.
What is wrong with PEOPLE today, was my question, Is it the childs fault solely that he is acting this way? I think not.
The problem with America in particular, is that we are FED, fed until we are about to burst, fed lies, chemicals, and idols... Fed, but not nourished, in every manner of speaking.
Parents want to blame the teachers, while teachers blame the parents.
Parents want their childs school to be filled with 'fun' coddling and 'care' and want them to be baby-sat while they busy themselves doing what needs to be done. Fun in important in a childs life, so is a caring, guiding hand.... But school, is not the place for either. Teachers used to be revered as philosophical minds, and the people would stop and listen in awe, and have a thirst for knowledge that was unquenchable. Parents have stripped the pride of the occupation, by demanding that they have lower salaries, and yet cry out for lavish new schools, and curriculum that include 'fun' things and extra curricular activities, to prolong having their child out of the house.
Teachers blame the parents, but the teachers themselves are just as guilty. They are meant to have authority in their classrooms, they are meant to be able to teach their classes and control their classes... but when a teacher scolds a child for acting out, they are rebutted by angry screaming parents saying that their child was 'traumatized'
Teachers used to be along side Pastors, teaching about God, and that was stripped away to 'separate church and state' which in the constitution is actually referring to not let the state restrict their peoples to one religion, not to teaching about God in schools.
Parents are afraid of disciplining their children in fear that A. The child will hate them (If it makes them better in the long run, Who cares if they hate you now? ) B. That they will have their children taken from them for being 'too strict' (this is becoming almost an epidemic that the state is taking over control of how we raise our children...but who is letting them? ) C. That they will 'scar' their precious little psyche ( You will scar them worse as people, as well as scar the WORLD, if you don't teach them self control, discipline and a sense of morality)
Parents think their child needs all of these new vaccines, and medications, "my child is hyper, he must need medication!" It couldn't possibly be the chemicals in the artificial food you are feeding them, reacting with the chemicals in their brains, and having an adverse reaction to the output of energy... No because parents just want to blindly open a box of Fruity cereal, and pour some milk on it and call it nutrition, because the box says so...
America cries for convenience, faster technology and more money... When what we really need is some hard work, less worry, and quite frankly less 'fun'.... I realized recently, that I feel like my days are full, that I am accomplishing something, then I look around and realize that nothing had been accomplished, except me 'relaxing'
Americans work harder than anyone else...at not working... We come up with new games, computers, gadgets, idolatry, something to fill idle hands, so we don't feel guilty for doing 'nothing' when that is exactly what we are doing... nothing... Our government has succeeded in making us a complacent, lazy, fearful, people...
I am by no means saying that I am not guilty. Because I am, but I am working every day to eliminate the frivolous spending of time, of precious time, more precious than gold because you can never get it back...
Today was my first step. I turned off the TV, and spent time showing my daughter what house work is, spent time with her showing that as a member of a family, and as a member of society, she has duties, and responsibilities outside of just herself. My son as well... I started earlier with him, and its paying off, because now, he will clean up toys and shoes, and trash and put them where they go... My daughter is working on it but she is getting closer.
I want to write a little on expectations on children as well.
What you expect out of your child you will usually get.
If you set no expectations, or constantly believe that your child will misbehave, then they most likely will. You expect them to behave poorly, then they will exceed those expectations. But if you make it clear to them that you expect obedience to you and respect to other adults, (and repercussions if these things are not shown) then they usually respond.
I was very lax with my daughter when she was a toddler, I was paying for it when she was 4-5. Now that I have grown some, as well as she has, and opened communications with her, what I expect of her, what she can and can not do, She has begun to respond well. She keeps her privileges if she does what she is supposed to, and looses them if she does not uphold her control of herself...
Today I told her she was to clean her room and put away her things, and look presentable before she was allowed to play outside, she cleaned her room, with no qualms then brushed her hair, teeth, washed her face changed into her 'day clothes' and then requested me to look over all she had done to see if she was now allowed to go outside, she did brilliantly. Later, I told her to scrape her plate into the trash, and put her dishes and her brothers into the sink, she asked if She could rinse the dishes as well, which I okay'd, while my two year old boy washed the table (with a little guidance for both.) then she bathed and went to sleep after a prayer...
Children act out for attention, I have found this out... and the way to cure it, is to give them some positive attention, some real quality time, and I don't mean both parent and child blankly staring at the television, I mean show them how to do something they didn't know how to do before, nourish their mind, body and soul...while doing the same for yourself simultaneously... it does wonders, and then, they will also want their space, as much as you want yours, they won't beg for every moment, when they know that you want to spend time with them, and will do so every day.
So in summation... Don't just feed your children.. Nourish them... and do the same for yourself... it can change your life...
Also. I recommend to every American, The book entitled The Listener, By Taylor Caldwell. Great read, and I will admit, some of these ideas are the expansions on phrases in that book...
I am not saying, to take these words as a law for life nor your parenting, for every child is different... But, maybe this will help someone out there... maybe, just maybe... It will help the Kids Today.
