Each Generation Does It Their Own Way

I arrived at the Y about 10 minutes before my 8:15 class started one morning. I usually get there a few minutes early to have a quick cup of coffee and socialize with other Y members. It's a great group of men and women, some who I know well and some very little.

One woman had just come back from visiting her 3 year old grandson in New York, and commented that she was not cut out to be a grandmother. We all agreed that it wasn't that, it was just that 70 year old women are not cut out to chase 3 year olds. Give us a 5 or 6 year old with some common sense, and we all love taking them to the park or out to dinner. Young children are meant for young parents.

There were 5 of us, all between 60-70, and we started talking about child rearing, and how today's generation has a very different approach than we had. We all agreed that if our 2 year old couldn't behave in a restaurant we would remove them and if they still couldn't behave, we would leave. Our philosophy was that children need boundaries and consequences. We all agreed that child rearing philosophy has changed. How often have you been to a restaurant where a young child is misbehaving and the parents just pretend like nothing is happening? I've seen a lot of that. I remember one time we were in a restaurant and 2 young children were crawling around the floor and in the aisles, as waitresses walked by with pots of hot coffee. No one said anything. It seems that many children are over indulged and many parents are afraid to discipline their children. They want their kids to like them.

Children today seem so bright at such a young age. Are they any smarter than our kids were or we were? I don't think so. They are just exposed to so much, so early. Three year olds operating computers, cell phones and cameras. Does that mean they're smarter? No, they're just exposed to different things than we were. I remember my son David at age 4, loved the game of Concentration. We would turn over a deck of cards and try to find matches. He always won. It's a simple game, and I imagine that if he were young today, he'd be doing amazing things on the computer as so many kids are today. When I said that each generation does it their own way, I was referring to the changes in child rearing. In one generation the experts told you to put your baby on his front or side, then the next generations said to put them on their back. One generation said to put them on a sleeping schedule, the next generation says to do something else. Our generation believed in boundaries and consequences. It seems that many parents today let their children make the rules. They eat when they want, sleep when they want, in general get what they want. They have learned how to do that.

There are lots of GREAT parents out there today. I'm just commenting on the ones who are controlled by their children. They don't know how to say no. I guess if these parents didn't exist a show like Supernanny wouldn't be so popular. It will be interesting to see how the next generation raises their kids. One thing I know for sure, they'll do things differently.