I have been out of commission for a bit with this blog. Here and there, I write some bits of frivolous information.
I have come across a lot of topics I would like to address, yet had no time to really put much thought into it.
I am going into NYC with my daughter's class for a trip that I am organizing. It has taken every ounce of thought and energy, not to mention time away from me! The good news is the trip is tomorrow, the bad news is – it will probably rain! What else is new here!?
Thank you!
Way 2 Much 
June 8, 2006 at 10:39 am
I think this is all just indicitave of how kids are just being allowed to grow up too fast instead of being kids. I think it has a lot to do with pop-culture and the MTV generation. These girls want to be just like the pop stars they idolize on tv. Instead of being taught to strive to be intelligent, independant young women, they are learning that physical beauty is the way to get ahead and be liked. It’s sad and it doesn’t have to be that way. A parent can teach their children all their life that brains are more important than beauty, but when it comes to adolescence the kids are more interested in what their peers think, so I think there’s a certain amount of responsibility society as a whole needs to take on here.
June 9, 2006 at 1:54 pm
The old saying, “it takes a village to raise a child” in not so far off.
I believe it is false when I don’t agree with what my village is doing. I tend to say mind your business and let me deal with my child – my way. That is because I don’t think their values are my values. They would tend to say I am too hard on my children. Shame on me for expecting them to keep their hands to themselves, study to get good grades and be respectful to their adults. What a horrible parent I am.
However, it it true, in the sense that you put it. As a parent, I try to tell my children the truth. They matter. No matter what. You are beautiful – no matter what. Beauty comes from within – it is from your heart and your soul. You are doing your best, you are kind and considerate, than you are a winner. Plain and simple. I try to give my children the desire to be their best in 4 areas of life: academic, athletic (good physical shape – for heart healthy reasons), active in community (service to others) and spiritual. If they can have these 4 aspects of character woven into their fiber of being, they are complete. They do not need the fashion, the money or the “total package”. Unfortunately, my “village” is telling them they have to. My daughter worries about how her clothes are fitting because “soandso” will say something. You know what I can say about “soandso”! But I hold back.
These girls, no matter what their parents are trying to teach them, are finding it hard in today’s society. Pop-culture indeed is ruining it for everyone. Who decided they should be what rules the world. We need to band together and claim our lives back. We need to impress upon our children that what matters most is how you treat others.
I couldn’t agree with you more, Dan. It saddens me to no end. I wish I could help, but it seems like I am one voice in the wilderness – no one can hear. If we all band together, perhaps we can be heard – I just don’t know where to start. I feel helpless. I try to be there for my daughter, and her friends, that’s the best I can do right now. I guess that’s a start.
June 9, 2006 at 2:07 pm
Fear not. Just because your children may not appear to be listening to you now, they are. I was a rebelious teenager who tried to be everything my parents weren’t, but they kept pounding away their values and trying to teach me their ideal of right and wrong. Now that I’m an adult I’ve come right back around and espouse the very values they taught me that I tried to fight. Your children hear you and in the end, when they are adults and it really matters you’ll be surprised at how well your lessons stuck.
June 10, 2006 at 9:05 pm
I pray you are right – thanks for your support!