The current assault on our children is unprecedented. With
grandmothers throwing their kids off of parking garage footpaths to mothers
killing their children, stuffing them in a car trunk and going off to party,
the goings on in America
When innocence is
targeted in an effort to exact revenge or to remove an obstacle to allow for
freedom of indiscretion, societal indignation is not only expected it is
obligatory.
As a people, community, country we cannot afford to be
despondent with or dismissive of the proliferating reports we see in the news
with respect to the safety and well being of our kids. Hanging our heads and
sighing from the grievous report of a young person dying over a pair of shoes
or something as seemingly innocuous as watching a mother defend, characterizing her daughter as being an "individual" and "artistic" for wanting to
wear a salacious, provocative outfit for her yearbook picture is ridiculous.
Why have the words stupid, unethical, and immoral fallen
from our lexicon?
Is everything worth justifying so that other’s indiscretions
go unnoticed or un-judged? I mean, do we really want to turn everything in to a
right of personal choice, allowing for an all out assault on common decency,
robbing our children of a chance to mature enough to comprehend the plethora of
depravities they are being bombarded with daily? What happen to maternal and
paternal instinct to protect the children? Are we so rapacious and
self-absorbed that we no longer have time to give our kids a fighting chance by
fortifying them morally and ethically, enriching their lives with positive,
steadfast examples of positive living.
Parents no longer care enough to monitor their kids to see
what they are watching on TV or what they are perusing on the internet. Kids as
early as elementary school are reciting words and acting out scenes filled with
sexual connotations, violent overtones and misogynistic lyrics they have heard
on the radio, seen on TV or ripped straight from the internet. Moreover, these
kids are left to interpret these despicable visual and audio barrages on their
juvenile minds and perceptions, leading them to believe that “right” is some
abstract concept based on individual perception and that acceptable social norms
and self discretion is something void of their responsibility or
accountability.
Regardless of who you are or where you live you have the
responsibility to ensure that your child is given guidance and love. Allowing a
child to be liberally exposed to society’s iniquities is wrong. Guidance starts
at home. Turn off the smut and indulge your kids in meaningful activities. Show
them that you care by asking them what they are doing on the computer, who they
are talking to at school, and what they are talking about with friends and
acquaintances. And should your child see something, hear something or read
something that has moral and ethical implications in society, discuss it with
them. Tell them it is stupid, criminal, unethical or immoral if that is what it
is. Let them know right and wrong do exist. Instill in them that wrong is not an
arbitrary, arcane concept conceived by some phantom establishment, but a
standard of living that shows deference to your fellow man and upholds the
expectation and obligation of decency and civility as equal denizens of this
world.
Cherish your kids and make them your priority. Correct them
when they are wrong and praise them for their accomplishments, big or small.
The world is changing rapidly, putting increasing pressure on our kids to
mature quickly if they are to survive and thrive as respected and productive
members of the world to come. Although it may be difficult to forgo your adult indulgences,
as you have earned them through hard work and sacrifice, remember to look into
the eyes of your future…our future…and nurture in them the love, compassion,
curiosity, and all of the other positive virtues that make us better people.
Undoubtedly our children will grow and be given the chance
to experience every facet of life both good and bad as we have. Yet it is the
indelible tools we give them when they are young that form the foundation for
when they embark on their solo journey. Feed them well, clothe them well and
enrich their minds so that they are spiritually sound, individually confident,
and morally strong.
Let’s make the children our priority, not our burden.
One of the most
powerful things in this word can be obtained and used liberally by anyone who
chooses to use it. “If” can be the beginning of something great or the
acquiescence to defeat. How will your “if” today?
S. McGill
