Friday, August 05, 2011

An all day sort of post.....

Plunging stock markets, dollar at an all time low to the Swiss Franc, polar bear killed a British school boy...... the world is not a happy place at the moment. And I haven't mentioned unemployment rates, soaring prices, or the weather.

Hello.

I have been trying to write a post for most of the day, and I have deleted thousands of words, had a major rant and then thought better of it, and am now sitting here with a big blank where the words once were. However, it was very satisfying to write them down. I start on something and then go and wander round the garden. delete, write some more, wander round the kitchen. Delete. Sigh.

My brain has gone on holiday. Unfortunately, it left the rest of me behind.

So here are a few things to ponder....

  • What did you want to be when you grew up? Or...what DO you want to be when you grow up? (Age is irrelevant.)
  • Do you think that a blog called ALL ACCESS should restrict book giveaways to only US readers? All access? Maybe the name should change.
  • Do you have a dehydrator and is it worth buying?
  • What are you watching on TV?
Ah, I think this would amuse some of you - I was listening to a radio programme which was discussing new governmental directives for early years monitoring of children. You can read about it here . They have a new 5 point plan, which apparently includes praise and affirmation. One wonderful caller raised a pertinent issue the government appears to have missed. That if little Johnny is raised on praise and affirmation alone, he will have a really tough time in life. Praise and affirmation are essential, of course - I really do believe that. However, balance is also important. Little Johnny needs to recognise that he can be wrong, make mistakes, be disobedient, and that there are consequences he has to learn to deal with before he hits the classroom. Like discipline. Rules. Respect. And all over the land, teachers were cheering. So was I. 

Too often, kids are raised believing that they are perfect and can do no wrong, and that the universe clearly revolves around them, and finding out that it doesn't is a bit of a shock. A mega shock. One ex head teacher raised some valid points here . 

But you know what, it starts so much earlier than that. What if, instead of one or 2 ante-natal classes the week before the baby was due which is the norm now), young first time mums, instead, went to weekly classes for 6 months, which included antenatal exercises, feeding and caring for children, early years development, and everything that encompasses? Other mums could bring their babies to the class once they had given birth, and the actual reality would go a long way to making things easier for them later . 

You see, the single greatest problem is that there are no longer older Mums around to help or guide any more. Sally Clarkson raised this issue last week. Here in the UK, people either have to work (the government wants every single person to work, including mothers of young children) and that means Grannies are also at work now, instead of being around to teach and help. The cost of living, or most specifically, housing, means both parents have to work, so child minders or nursery staff have more contact with young children. And modern day demographics mean that families go where the work is and all live hundreds of miles from each other. 

It is a recipe for disaster. 

The extended family no longer exists. Children need time and love, and parents who understand the responsibility which comes with raising a child to adulthood. Stay at home Mums need enormous respect, instead of derisory comments. Being a mother is a career. I heard someone say "when I embarked on the career of motherhood..." and it was like a siren going off in my head. It is a career. One of the toughest in the world.

Aiyaiyai. 

I got on that soapbox again, didn't I. Right. Enough for now. I did not intend writing any of this, but enough is enough and I am going to watch NCIS. 

6 comments:

Helen in Switzerland said...

Oh Linds, wise words...you are so right. I'm very glad that I live somewhere, which although it may be a little behind the times in many ways, still values the family and mothers being there for their children and where on the whole it's possible to live on one wage or one and a half at least...and where we don't seem to have an awful lot of the problems that there are in the UK, or at least not to the same extent...

1) I'm afraid I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up...a best selling novelist would be nice, or an olympic marathon runner - but at 47 I may have missed the boat on the latter! Actually I think I just want to be me and be healthy when I grow up!

2) No

3) No

4) Diamond League Athletics from Crystal Palace :)

Have a great weekend!

Dawn said...

I'd love to know what else you ranted about!

I am watching Judge Judy right this moment. I don't watch the news any more - too depressing.

I want to be really retired when I grow up - no more raising of children! But I'm glad I'm there for them right now, and not still going to work.

I don't have a dehydrator, and I don't know what an ALL ACCESS blog is, but it sounds like an oxymoron to call it all access and leave somebody out.

Linda said...

I absolutely agree Linds. Well said.
I want to be a writer when I grow up.
I'm not watching tv right now (there really isn't much to watch these days). I usually watch with handwork, lap top or book in front of me!
Have a great weekend Linds!

Crystal said...

I agree wholeheartedly!! Two of our daughters are full-time stay at home moms right now and they are often looked at with raised eyebrows. But their children are thrilled and so am I! I think solving childhood obesity issues would also be addressed if more parents were home with time and energy to cook from scratch.

1. I always wanted to be an airline stewardess. But I'm so happy being a grandmother now :)

2. Yes - the name should be changed.

3. I don't have one and I don't think I use enough dehydrated products to warrant it. And I also could not be without a deep freeze! I think that's a necessity. Have you considered a small apartment sized one? They aren't very expensive here in Canada.

4. Not watching much TV at all right now. We don't have cable or satellite and there's not much on now. And I agree with Dawn - the news is depressing, especially with all the doom and gloom of the stock market and world finances.

And kids need to experience all of life, while knowing they are loved unconditionally and encouraged wholeheartedly. That does not mean unlimited praise to me.

Happy weekend to you!

Vee said...

Good soapbox.

Elliot MacLeod-Michael said...

I'm 31 and when I grow up I want to be Chewbacca.
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