Am I the “World’s Best Parent”? Heck no!
But, I believe I have enough common sense to be among the top 10 percent
or so. At the very least, I am not in
the bottom ten percent. Comforting, I
know.
The old adage that “anyone can make a baby, but not everyone
can be a parent” is absolutely true. I
have seen some awful parenting over the years – and I have only been a parent
myself for 12 years now. Those of you
who have been parents much longer have seen far worse that I have in my dozen
years as a dad.
Recently, my wife and I went to see the movie The Grey, starring Liam Neeson. I didn’t realize it until we were seated in
the theater, but the movie is rated R.
As the previews were beginning to roll, I saw a young dad bring in his
son, who looked to be about five years old.
They sat on the front row. At
almost the same time, I looked to my left, and saw a mom and dad being seated
with their son, who may have been ten years old. I just shook my head.
Finally, just as the movie was beginning, two young couples
(reeking of cigarette smoke – that is another topic for another day) slithered
into the row in front of us. One of the
couples had their daughter with them, and she was maybe four or five years
old. I felt SO uncomfortable knowing
that this little girl was going to be subjected to this movie – and I hadn’t
even seen the movie yet! The parents
likely didn’t want to get a baby-sitter, and thought it was “wise” to bring the
daughter on their gore-and-profanity-laced double-date.
Without giving away anything in the movie, there are brutal sequences
of blood and violence. Wolves are
attaching the survivors of a plane crash, and it’s not a pretty site. Further, the dialogue between the men is
enough to make anyone blush. Some of it
is humorous, but some of it is also too vulgar for 30-somethings to hear, much
less preschoolers. It was difficult at
times concentrating on the movie, when these idiot parents had their young
children sitting in the theater.
Irresponsible parents are everywhere. It’s more frightening than the hundreds of
people who are texting and driving all around you on the roads. These “adults” are making poor decisions that
also personally affect the hearts and minds of their very own children. It shouldn’t be a shock that many kids parent
themselves these days. They’ve never
been introduced to any guardrails in their lives to keep them on the right
track. And, whether you agree or not,
kids need boundaries. Further still,
they WANT boundaries!
My wife and I have a rule about movies. Our kids – ages 11 and 7 – do NOT ever see
R-rated movies. Sometimes, we will allow
them to see PG-13 movies, but only when we have seen them first, or if we have
investigated them enough to know there is no sex, very mild language, and no
drug use. For example, they can see the
Harry Potter movies with us, or Pirates of the Caribbean-type movies. But, we are still very selective of the PG-13
movies.
Dumb parenting decisions are unfortunately not limited to
the movie theaters. Parents allow their
kids to have entirely too many privileges without the child having to earn any
of them. Many parents also choose to
“respect their kids’ privacy” by not sticking their nose in their children’s
business. They lie to themselves and say
that their children and teens need their independence, but really it’s just
laziness. And, it’s irresponsible. I’d much rather have my kid be mad at me for
knowing what is going on, than to NOT know and be sorry later.
And the end of the day, it’s about common sense. People just don’t use it. And, they fail to consider the consequences
of being a terrible parent. They want to
be buddies with their kids instead of providing loving discipline.
A refusal to correct is a refusal to love;
love your children by disciplining them. Proverbs 13:24 (Message)
love your children by disciplining them. Proverbs 13:24 (Message)
