Of Concern

An interesting article sites that children no longer fear the parental role, or authority figures as a whole. Let me clarify by qualifying fear as equating to respect. This has troubled me for quite some time, ever since I experienced it first hand working at a middle school a few years back. The chaos that occurred in many of the classrooms was shocking. The students did not respect, nor fear, their teachers and punishment was regarded with a so-what attitude. I dismissed it with the understanding that this was an under performing school with low socio-economics and I didn't presume it to be a part of a larger trend. My fear is that this unruly attitude displayed by students is happening in vast numbers around the country.

Yesterday radio talk show host Dennis Prager referred back to the above mentioned article in an interview with David Klinghoffer, author of Shattered Tablets: Why We Ignore the Ten Commandments at Our Peril, as they attributed this phenomenon to that of a secular society. It was a terrific interview which I hate to butcher by attempting to paraphrase so if you have some time its well worth listening to or getting it on podcast or something. I was certainly compelled to pick up the book.

I mention this as I struggle with learning how to be a parent/disciplinarian of a toddler trying to establish her place in this family by testing her boundaries....constantly. Everyone has different ideas about parenting and I will not claim to know who is right and wrong. I attempt to do what is consistent with my value system, based on my Christian faith.

With that said, our intention (I will go out on a limb and speak for the Mr. as I believe us to be on the same page here) is to have a loving home, with clear boundaries and consequences where Mom and Dad do know best, and they don't let the kids win at games either. This is not to say I think we will always be right, but as long as we remain fairly reasonable people, respect is due on the shear notion that we are the adults. I hope to be as clear headed about it in the thick of the moment when the little one is trying and testing me beyond my patience. We shall see but I will keep the article by Patricia Dalton close by and hang the Ten Commandments in her room with "Honor thy Mother & Father" highlighted, underlined, and circled. I don't make the rules, God does.