Monday, October 29, 2007

What is Happening to our children of today?

What is happening to our children of today? We need to get back to what family really means. The world is getting more corrupt as each day goes by. When I was growing up, you could play outside of your home, go to the ball field to play basketball, or whatever sport you were into, or just hang out and talk with friends. Nowadays, some young children and teenagers cannot go outside or even to school without worrying if someone has a gun or other weapon to shoot and possibly kill them. It is a wonder why so many kids have depression, anxiety, or eating disorders because of all of the stress that they have to go through each day. Children should be able to run and play and just have lots of fun being a child. They should be able to go to school and concentrate on getting their education. When they are under so much stress, I feel that it is hard for them to concentrate on school and some children just decide to drop out and give up. Others become angry individuals, and continuously get suspended, or go on rampages like what happened today in Cleveland, Ohio.

Young people need someone to talk to and to feel that they are loved and that they are somebody. I had to fall to my knees today and pray for the people in Cleveland who are going through the tragic events that occurred today. It is hard on my heart to hear of another shooting, and the fact that the shooter who took his own life was only 14 years old. Suicide is not the answer at any age. What is this world coming to? I feel that we need to get back to families being families, and spending real time talking to each other. That's why I do what I call the "Phil the Pill Round Table".

The Phil the Pill Round Table means taking time out to talk to your children about how they are feeling or what is on their mind that they would like to talk about. After dinner or whichever meal you are having, you would go around to each child one at a time and let them say what they have to talk about at that time. If they would rather talk with you without the other siblings around you can go into another room and talk. Then just come back and have the other child take his/her turn to speak. This works great with my grandchildren and you would be surprised at how much you can connect with kids just by having a simple conversation. It is best to start while they are still little children; even before they are old enough to start school. That way, they will grow up learning good communication skills. When kids feel safe to talk about things with their parents, they may grow up without feeling like they have hit a dead end and are out of options. They can develop higher self-esteem and feel really good about themselves and life when there is a positive interaction between friends and family members. It only takes 5 to 10 minutes out of your busy day or week. However busy you think you may be, it is always best to take time out for your family, especially for your children. We are always taught and told that “the children are our future,” so we must make sure they feel that we love them and how much we care about them, and that they always have someone to turn to. We want our children to grow up and be the best that they can be.

Another tool that you could use with your young Children is my Children’s book, Phil the Pill and Friends: Making Positive Choices. It helps to encourage young children to stay in school to get their education, make positive choices and it also teaches them good communication skills. You may visit my web site at www.cafepress.com/mampcreations .

One thing that I wish could be back in all schools is the morning devotions. Even though we have so many different religions, we should still have devotion time where the children can worship with whatever faith they have in their family cultures. I am of the Christian faith, and I was raised in a Christian family. My Dad was a Baptist minister and I am so proud that he and my Mom taught us good family values and taught us to always keep our faith in God. If it was not for my family and my faith, I would not have gotten through many trials and tribulations in my own life. Let us all pray for our children and our schools. Let us pray for the injured, the family who lost their child, and all of the families in the community in Cleveland who are going through this very difficult time.


Written by: Author, M. Ann (Machen) Pritchard