TamraEmpower Your Children To Protect Themselves
October 13th 2006 04:57
Have you ever been in an uncomfortable situation where your stomach was all a flutter, in a situation where you knew you were being threatened, but while your tummy was fluttering, your mind told you that you had to be polite to this other person or people?
You were probably a child then, right?
Nowadays, if you were threatened or in an uncomfortable situation, as an adult, you would listen to your stomach, or instincts, stand up for yourself.
Recently, I blogged about this very topic after reading a story from another mom's blog where her 9 year old daughter was in such a situation, and despite her Dad standing right there beside her, the daughter remained polite, although shy.
Go read the story, I'll wait.
It's so important to talk to our children about listening to their inner voices. Those butterflies in their tummies are often right, and we ought to teach them how to speak up. Practice shouting No! Encourage communication, and teach our kids that polite isn't always the best route. That's how people get hurt.
Also recently, I met an employee at my son's school. Proud of my son, this man put his hand on my son's shoulder and ruffled his hair later in the conversation. Though I did nothing, I have to wonder if I'm just being paranoid.
Now I firmly believe the advice I've written here. But this begs the question...are we turning into a society where we are skeptical of every person we meet?
You were probably a child then, right?
Nowadays, if you were threatened or in an uncomfortable situation, as an adult, you would listen to your stomach, or instincts, stand up for yourself.
Recently, I blogged about this very topic after reading a story from another mom's blog where her 9 year old daughter was in such a situation, and despite her Dad standing right there beside her, the daughter remained polite, although shy.
Go read the story, I'll wait.
It's so important to talk to our children about listening to their inner voices. Those butterflies in their tummies are often right, and we ought to teach them how to speak up. Practice shouting No! Encourage communication, and teach our kids that polite isn't always the best route. That's how people get hurt.
Also recently, I met an employee at my son's school. Proud of my son, this man put his hand on my son's shoulder and ruffled his hair later in the conversation. Though I did nothing, I have to wonder if I'm just being paranoid.
Now I firmly believe the advice I've written here. But this begs the question...are we turning into a society where we are skeptical of every person we meet?
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Comment by amanda
xo
Amanda
Comment by Wendi
"With all due respect, Sir, I'd be more comfortable if you didn't touch me." My son, now that he's in his teens, would take a more comical approach and if someone ruffled his hair, he'd smile, reach out, and ruffle the hair of the one who did it. Awkward? Yes, but it gets his point across with humor.
I'm not sure what gives adults the idea that it's okay to touch kids anyway. A ruffle of the hair, a pinch of the cheek... we wouldn't do that to another adult, so why would we do it to a child?
Are we paranoid? Perhaps, but not without just cause. It's not just "strangers" we have to beware of anymore. I believe our children should be raised with caution, taught how to defend themselves, and encouraged to speak their mind while remembering their manners.