Where Are Our Kids Heading To

It Is Scary To Hear What Our Kids Are Saying….. Today I went to the local swimming pool for some much needed exercise….I was shocked by what a group of school kids were saying. I asked the teacher what grade they were in and they are all in year 9. I have a year 9 student so I was interested in hearing what the topic of conversation was based on…. Not A Pretty Conversation. It is damn right scary where our kids are heading to. They all thought because I was in the pool that I was swimming and could not hear what they were saying. They were free with their talk..by that I mean very loose with their language. As a Mum to a boy that was the same age of those kids I was most upset. Every second word was “f…” and there was so much talk about POT. One boy did not know what POT was, and thought they were talking about normal cigarettes. But that’s OK because the leader of the pack (trying to act super tough) sorted the mistake out. He started by calling him “retard” – “You Idiot, ciggys are what you and I smoke everyday but POT is a drug that I use at night to get high….makes you feel so good” !!! Gosh I was I holding my self back. I so wanted to jump out of the pool, grab the snot around the collar and give him my two cents worth. “RETARD” is one word I do not like……no one should ever be called that. Beside the fact that the kid was talking about drugs as if it was a normal every day lolly. One boy was so very rude to his teacher with swearing at her that I did put my nose into it….I called the boy over. I asked him if he had a Mum. To which he replied that he did but he lived with his Dad, so I changed my wording… Me – ” so would your Dad be proud of you right now, speaking like that”. The Boy – “No Miss, Sorry Miss” Me – “You are out of school uniform but you are out in public and you are representing your family. Think about how your Dad would feel right now hearing you speak to your teacher that way” The Boy – “Yes Miss” Me – “Hey, Don’t walk away….Please be the best person you can be. Say things that 10 years down the track you will be proud of yourself….Be the best you have inside of yourself”. The Boy – “Yes Miss. Sorry Miss, Thank you Miss” And he walks away. I continue with my swimming. I know that by now all the kids are staring at me, and the kids in the pool are talking about what I had to say. I stepped out of the comfort zone, out of what is concerned not normal….its not normal to speak to kids about their behavior anymore. BUT all I could think about was that I have a Boy that is the same age as this kid. And if he was speaking to a teacher the same way then I would be most upset.  If I could reach just one child and help him to be the best he can be then my day was a good one….. Imagine if there was a program out there that taught our kids at school how to communicate without swearing, how to achieve goals, how to set goals, how to be the best person that they were born to be. I let the teacher know what I had said….She let me know that he has special needs because he has a “Behavior problem”. That to me means even more, that the boy needs guidance and influence that he can look up to so he can turn his life around. DID I HELP ONE KID? Not sure but gosh I sure hope so….. What has happened to society that we are afraid to speak out and stop our kids from self destruction? Where Are OUR Kids Heading To? Hope with all my being that my Woody Boys know that they can be and do anything that they set their minds too. That’s all I ask of my five Wood Boys, To Be The Best Person That They Can Be. And to be respectful of others. Is that asking too much of our kids? Here’s to you changing our kids for the better. Lisa Wood

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