At the risk of sounding like an old curmudgeon, who walked five miles to school, uphill both ways, I worry about our children; specifically their ability, or lack of, to navigate their way home. I know I am not alone when I admit to chauffeuring my precious offspring every time the intended destination is more than ½ a mile away. When I do allow them to get somewhere under their own steam, you can rest assured the swat team is following close behind.
Back when I grew up, this was completely unheard of. We walked to and from school, in all kinds of weather. That is what umbrellas, gloves and goulashes were for. After school, we immediately changed out of our “school” clothes, donned our “play” clothes and headed out until dinner time. We roamed the neighborhood for hours on bikes, or super skates, till dinner time or the street lights came on. Did our parents know where we were every moment? Highly doubtful. They knew we were probably in the vicinity, and that was good enough for them. The only cell phones available, if indeed there were any, belonged to James Bond. Back at our house we still had the party line! Yet, we survived. We learned how to navigate around the city, find short cuts, and could get to any friend’s house with our eyes closed. As we grew older, and by older I mean sixth grade, we started to use public transportation. Everyone knew where the bus stop was. We quickly became adept at schedules, which number bus went where, and how to transfer between different routes. By high school we thought nothing about catching a train into New York City, and taking a walk around that great metropolis. Yet, we survived.
People say, “Well, it was a different time.” I say perverts and pedophiles have been roaming around since the dawn of civilization. Our parents taught us not to talk to strangers, never get into anyone’s car, and always travel with a buddy. These rules still apply. I do believe that some terrible things happened to children when I was young. I just don’t think we heard about it. Nowadays we have instant access through the internet. While this is a good thing, the down side is that it has scared us half to death. We shield our children to the point of incapacity.
When my eldest was learning to drive, I was horrified to discover that he didn’t know how to get anywhere. If he was dropped a mile or two away, he would be completely stymied as to how to make his way home. It was my fault. I guess I thought he would absorb navigation skills from all the times he was driven places. What I have discovered is that can’t happen if your nose is buried in a game boy, and your headphones are securely fastened to your ears!
How did we ever get from point “a” to point “b”? We knew where we were, and where we were going. We used maps, another outmoded form of information! I don’t think my children could use one in real life. My kids rely on the GPS to navigate for them.
I guess the point I am trying to make, is that by being so overly protective, I have robbed my children of that feeling of independence that comes from knowing where you are, and how to get to where you want to be. I am going to try and back off, let them out of the bubble, call off the swat team, and let them learn the best way; by doing.
