Foster Care Book: Chapter 1
Chapter 1 - The Convoluted Concept Child Raising Concepts
We, in this country, have completely lost the following concepts:
Raising Children While Living In The Family Environment.
Hillary Clinton once stated that it takes a village to raise a child. Ms. Clinton forgot to mention a most important aspect of that phrase. She either forgot or could not recognize that the sentence should have had a phrase added to it. The phrase should state: "It takes a village to raise a child in Africa (which is where she got the idea)."
and
One Parent Remains In The Home.
The country has, somehow, gotten off the track as far as raising children is concerned. There obviously are cases where both parents must work in order to provide adequate financial care of the children but in a very high percentage of the cases that, in my judgment, is not true! Both parents work for a variety of reasons that have nothing to do with the absolute need of two incomes. They are in the work place to satisfy their own emotional needs, to purchase more cars, big screen TVs and other ’stuff’ designed to ’keep up with the Jones’ and to buy drugs.
Family Time
Families who sit down to meals together have developed a rapport between the children and the parents that allows for a free and eagerly anticipated communication. I think spending a leisurely time at the supper table is tantamount to the bonding a child gets suckling at his mother’s breast.
The continual bonding of the family on a daily basis keeps families together. It aids in the free communication of ideas and discussions of what each member of the family is doing, what interests them the most, planning family outings, family meetings and just plain family fun. Society has become so complex and each member of the family so busy with their own activities that communication and caring have become lost. The parents just want to get on with their activities and hope that the kids allow them to take part in ’adult’ activities without interference from the children
The bottom line is: How important are our children in the priority of life? When I was a youngster, the whole family revolved around the children. That has changed! Many of the children of today are what we in foster care refer to as ’throw away’ children. We are not preparing our children to be upstanding citizens prepared to take on the responsibility of keeping our country free and great. We adults are concerned with our own selfish motivations and priorities. The children, at a very early age, are left to fend for themselves. They have been referred to as ’latch key’ kids. That means they raise themselves or are raised by their peers or their sibling, neither group is capable of raising themselves. How can we expect them to raise other kids? Talk about the blind leading the blind! Does anyone with a real sense of logic believe that kids can raise themselves.
© Chuck Slate
SPONSOR
photolisting of US & international waiting children see other children
