Although
I don't have children I just finished an excellent book called Last Child
in the Woods. It discusses the downfall of kids being so protected and
frequently not being allowed to go out and be kids like many of us did.
OOOOOOHHH, this is such a pet peeve of mine!!!!!!
I do have children, and they get to experience life let me tell
you. It makes me crazy when people run after their kids telling them
don't do this or don't touch that because they might get dirty or get a
scratch or mess up their room or.....[enter some other thing that
inconveniences the parent].
When my kids went to do something that had some hazard to it, my line of
thinking was "Can it kill them? How likely is it to kill them?" If
they had a reasonable chance of surviving, then go for! If they could
get seriously hurt, we generally discussed the means by which to reduce the
risk. And if there was still considerable risk, we evaluated how inconvenient
a trip to the ER would be that day ;-p
People gasp when they find out that my kids have handled knives and guns
and machinery and other hazards for years, always with appropriate supervision
of course. Now that they are both teenagers they not only can
handle these with ease, they also understand risk assessment and personal
responsibility (they are accountable for all of their actions, there is no
"boys will be boys" here). Honestly, the hardest thing for me to
watch with them was when my youngest decided to steal my husband's horse
and turn him into a CT/endurance horse. This was no push button horse,
but a hot and opinionated Paso Fino. I prepared them both as best I
could, but there were times when I watched from afar as he dealt with
issues and I was more scared than I have ever been in my life.
But I didn't let my insecurity stunt his personal development. He
no longer rides but those years he rode made a HUGE difference to his growth
of maturity and self-confidence and self-esteem. He now is an
awesome crew and regular ride volunteer :-)
It's pretty common knowledge that when you come to our house you not only
are allowed to get dirty, you are probably going to be encouraged to get
dirty. And track it into the house if you want. And the dirtier
the better, because that usually means you've been doing something really fun
outside, usually with animals or tools, and in my book that trumps sitting
inside with the TV/computer babysitter anyday.
'k, off my soapbox ;-p
Dana Baldwin,
who's motto was "No Whining!" long before I heard of MaryBen
:-)))
