Today's Youth....

On 9/16 I posted about a class I was taking for 3 weeks called Raising Strong Girls.

 Wow. I seriously think that all parents should have parenting classes offered to them every couple of years. 

We watched a documentary on girls ages 11-14 and how they thought the media affected them. Now this was done about 6 or so years ago when Brittany, Mandy Moore and Christina Aguillara were the hot young things. It is frightening the things our girls absorb just from the media. That is tv and magazines. Now with the computer such a popular item, I am sure it is worse.

2 weeks of the class and I want to never buy a magazine other than Real Simple, want to take away tv and computer until my kids are 30 and basically never let them out of the house. The other 5 moms and I want to live in a bubble on Costa Rica. Not very probable, but a fantasy, nonetheless.

The 4th grade girls have been a group since preschool that we knew to watch out for. OK, so B is one of them. It is just a class of very strong willed leader type girls. They had cliques when they were 4. I wouldn't believe it, if I hadn't have seen it with my own eyes. Now that they are 9, things are getting worse. B came home talking about the different "groups" of kids and considers herself a "floater". Today she told me that there is a group of girls that is known as the mean girls and are saying things like, "You're a loser", "Those earrings are so ugly, why are you wearing them" and "you are mean" to various girls in the class. 

I just don't get how gjrls get this way. Well, I guess I do, but I would rather not. These are girls that I have known since they were like 2 years old. I am friends with their parents. 

One of the things we (the moms in the class) decided was to try to get our kids involved in something they loved, whether it be sports, drama or music. I know, growing up, I was a ski racer and didn't want anything to interfere with my Olympic goal. I didn't quite make it to the Olympics, but I never got into too much trouble in high school either. 

I think reading some of the books I suggested last week whether you have girls or boys would be the first step toward a better world. I suppose, petitioning the media for less sex or sexiness in shows, commercials, videos, etc... would be the next thing. 

The Donkey

This is an email that my mom forwarded to me. Hope you like it!



One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do.

Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quieted down.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up.

Pret ty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each
of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the
deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.
2. Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.
3. Live simply and appreciate what you have.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.