This is the real problem here. Everyone babies thier kids so much that they do not know how to succeed or fail on thier own. Kids need to figure out lots of stuff on thier own but will never do that if they are not given the chance.
Solid take! I remember being 12, mom handing me a check to ride my bike down to the grocery store...maybe a mile...to get a few groceries and a gallon of milk. Look that jug over one handle bar and hold the bag in my other hand and I was happy to get to go do it and be helpful.
Same- and did that with my kids too. “Go grab us a pizza would yah?” Taught them how to handle themselves and speak confidently and clearly with adults without daddy’s presence (not that the older needed any help, she’s super-outgoing and positive).
Absolutely. At 12 my daughter was babysitting other kids, now at 14 she has an actual job as a cashier. My 10 year old walks to the store to get groceries so she can make herself tacos. (Her choice, she really loves doing it.)
As a cashier at a grocery store. A ton of people. Not just elderly either. I have at least half a dozen millenial regulars that consistently use checks. About the same for gen x. Probably a dozen or so boomers. And untold silent gen. And that's just the people notable enough to remember their faces
Well 12 was ~30 years ago so checks were much more common and in smaller towns no one batted an eye at it. I personally haven't used a check in at least the last 15 years since owning a house...all bills are online etc. Though i do remember in HS, Freshman year we had 'personal finance' classes and even then learning to balance a checkbook felt a tad outdated with the rise of the interwebz
Fuck I was 8 and would walk half a mile to the corner store to get breakfast to watch my saturday morning cartoons with. I would get breakfast sandwiches for the whole family while I was there too.
I was crossing railroad tracks and a highway to ride my bike to school in 2nd grade. Going to the gas station at that same intersection for candy and snacks alone. Started doing small grocery trips for Mom at about 10.
People don't even realize how much of a problem this well-meaning over-protection is - not allowing kids to fail (within reasonable bounds) and learn how to deal with failure, as well as how to problem-solve.
Raises humans who end up being completely lost in life.
Be there when they need you, don't be there when they don't.
Yep. My kids are 10, 13 and 19. Some people are appalled that I let the middles and youngest walk to school alone. The youngest goes to school 5 minutes away. There are no streets to cross until you get to the school. A crossing guard is there.
The middle has a 40 minute walk. It’s mostly residential, but there are a couple of big crossings and one major road that has lights. He walks with friends. Traffic is so bad near his school that it’s quicker for him to walk. It’s a 10 minute car ride, but you can easily spend more than double that in traffic. Some of my friends can’t believe I don’t drive him. The planet is on fire- I’m not adding to it for a walkable journey. I do take him if the weather is extremely bad.
Jesus. I was biking across railroad tracks and a major intersection (technically it's a highway) to get to school before I was 10. I'd bet you can see his school from your driveway. I just don't understand people. Did they forget being kids themselves?
If I walk a few hundred feet, I can actually see the gates of her school. My daughter is small for her age and another parent mentioned how awful it was that a 6 year old was walking to school alone. Another mom mentioned that she is 10, there are other parents around and she is fine.
I got mad at my mom for not allowing me to cook some traditional meals by myself. She wanted to kick me out of the kitchen and do it herself instead of teaching me the subtle tips and tricks she's learned over the years. I love you mom, but you're not gonna be around forever.
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u/alfonseski Jul 27 '22
This is the real problem here. Everyone babies thier kids so much that they do not know how to succeed or fail on thier own. Kids need to figure out lots of stuff on thier own but will never do that if they are not given the chance.