| Is it Me or a Chemical
Imbalance?
I'm sorry if it seems I'm harping
on this issue but I can't for the life of
me figure out why teenagers have
such difficulty following simple
directions.
Directions: Do a load of towels.
Results: A load of towels left
in the washer overnight.
Excuse: " Ah, I didn't know you
wanted me to dry 'em too !
My thought: " Did somebody forget
to set your happy little ass in front of
the TV so Sesame Street could educate
you ?"
Directions: Clean up your own mess.
Results: Dirty dishes in the sink,
bread crumbs on the table and nothing
put away.
Excuse: " Well, I didn't know you
meant I have to do my own dishes too ! "
My thought: " I wonder if flash
cards had to be posted in the bathroom
until you learned that, Yes ..you
do wipe your own ass! "
Directions: Do not go anywhere.
Results: Mine goes "down the street"
for a few hours.
Excuse:" I didn't know staying
on our block is goin' somewhere!"
My thought: Maybe I'd better draw
this kid a map. You are HERE. Everywhere
else is SOMEWHERE.
Directions: Do your homework.
Results: Someone else's handwriting
is in the workbook.
Excuse: That is my too my hand
writing!"
My thought: Like, yeah right !
That explains why this page looks like a
three year old scribbled the letters
and this page looks like a paralegal
transcribed it !
These examples are merely a few
of the milder incidents in our house. I
can't help but to wonder if as
parents we are expected to find our own way
through the teenager's phase of
"I bet she's stupid enough to believe that
one."
Teenagers constantly sneak around
and when confronted about it they say,
"Well I don't know why you guys
don't trust me !"
I have to ask you. Are teenagers
really this stupid or just really this
good at playing stupid ? And also,
who or what do we blame ?
Another thing that gets me is the
fact that we are expected to run our kids
to a therapist for every little
thing. Back when I was a kid a good old
fashioned ass whippin' pretty much
was a cure all for trying to out smart
my parents. We knew back then if
we intended to lie about something we'd
better have a plan. We'd better
get our story straight and stick to it.
Nobody in my neighborhood ever hollered
out the window, " Take the kid to
therapy!" Get real. We kids would
gather in the court yard to play and if
we heard, "Why, if I was you I'd
lay an ass whippin' on that kid" we all
stopped whatever game we were playing
and just looked at each other trying
to remember what we'd done that
we thought we got away with. Nine out of
ten times we were on the stoop
spilling our guts and beggin' not to get a
whippin'. "Oh God....I did it mommy
but please don't whip my ass!"
I admit some parents crossed the
line and in fact many kids suffered abuse,
myself included. I know now I had
an unhealthy fear of my mother. However,
I gleened the ability from that
experience and many good self-help books to
give my children a healthy fear
of Me. I set rules and stood by them even
when grounding them meant I had
to change my plans. I was fair and
consistant. I learned not to give
a consequence to my child that I wasn't
willing to see through myself.
I must also say that sometimes in
today's society I feel we as parents have
been robbed of the right to discipline
our children. I know that this month
I have strayed from my usual format
of Women's Humor. But let's just say
something compelled me to write
this as a letter to my constant readers.
Possibly consider this an explanation
why women do find humor in almost
everything. Sometimes if we didn't
laugh, we'd cry.
I'm going to close with this thought.
As women we are born givers. There's
no request asked of us we don't
try to fullfill. We are compassionate and
strong creatures. We are diverse
and versatile. As for myself, at 45 I have
just begun to take great pride
in my sexual identity and I hope and pray
more women become aware of what
it really means to be a part of this
wonderful group.
So, if on occasion we bitch (men
say that like it's a dirty word) and
complain, tell our friends things
about you that you'd rather we didn't or
spend a little more than we can
afford, well, forgive us !
Next month I'll get back on track
girls. Women are resilient too. My new
motto is: KISS MY HAPPY ASS
Please do share your own experiences
with us. We like listening as much as
you do.
Tah Tah for now girlfriends.
|
