Won't somebody please think of the children?

                There is so much going on in my mind, things I want to talk about that I feel very strongly about. However, now that I sit to actually write, all I can think about is my kids. What kind of world am I raising them in? What kind of world am I leaving them in? I have enough doubts about what kind of world I’ll die in, let alone the kind of world my kids will eventually see.

                I think I’m at the point where having “the talk” with the kids doesn’t mean the “birds and the bees”. I know that doesn’t really mean much coming from a White person with White kids. However, I’m thinking “the talk” I’m referencing is different. I’m not even sure how to put it into words. From my upbringing “the talk” was explaining how a baby was made, or “the talk” was about how people would treat you differently because of your skin (I wasn’t taught that one, I had to learn it as I experienced life).

                We’re now at a point where we need to “talk” to our kids about goings on at school. We need to tell them that the open shooter drill is important, that it is a necessary part of life. It used to be that you could reassure your kid about a fire drill, “a very rare event could happen where you would need to leave the building”. This isn’t true anymore, we now need to talk to our kids to say that there might be a bad guy that enters their school and they need to hide.

                On top of those horrors, we have to inform our children about the current events of the USA. How are we supposed to explain that without simply saying that some people say “if you’re upset with the government you can protest” and others say “you can’t protest the government”. Or to put it more simply “If you’re upset you can’t speak out, but if you’re happy you should speak out”.

                American culture has become too much about what you can’t do, rather than what you can do. The focus is on you can’t go out without wearing a mask, rather than you can save a life by wearing a mask. You can’t gather in a large group to discuss your faith, or you could gather in that group and be responsible for mass death.

                I don’t understand why thinking of people around you has become a stigma in this country. Why has it become that doctor’s orders has turned into infringement? Why has looking out for someone other than ourselves become a bad thing? Why has a minor inconvenience turned into a boiling point topic, that has led to so much violence?

                What am I supposed to tell my kids? People are mistreated and killed because its good for business?  People are mistreated and killed because it always been that way? People are mistreated and killed because it would infringe on our rights otherwise? People are mistreated and killed because that’s how God intended?

                I know I’m not the most elegant person, and I have thousands of my own faults. Is it possible to believe that we need to make some changes for our children? Our grandchildren? Is it possible to admit that where we are now is horrible? Is it possible to admit that where we are now is out of control? Is it possible to admit that where we are now is frightening for our children, and that they know it? Is it possible to admit that we have lost the handle on the path forward and that we are floundering? Is it possible to admit that we are in need of some big change to ensure our kids have a chance in the world?

                If we can’t say yes to any of the above questions, I don’t think that there is a future for this planet, let alone the country. Caring for our children should be our first and foremost priority. We owe it to them to leave behind a better world than we inherited, always has been true, and always will be. Nurturing and cultivating our children’s minds is bigger than we can imagine, we need to make sure that give them the best chances to succeed, and not fill their heads with bad information or politics.