Look, the way I see it, Wine Wednesday should be earned. What better way than a good weekly whine.
Today’s whine is about kids and the pressure to be sexy.
I’m not talking about teens or kids entering teen years. I’m talking about 8, 9 and 10 year olds. There is an increased pressure of this young generation to be sexy because it leads to popularity and just like it was for all of us growing up – popularity is a status yearned to be achieved.
Well, it’s terrifying me. It’s totally upsetting to me how quickly kids are having to grow up today. It’s not fair. It’s like they are gifted eight to ten years of innocence, only to be quickly catapulted into sex, manipulation, emotions and totally vulgarity that they are not nearly ready for, but experiencing through technology, society and media.
What is happening and why are we (the responsible adults) allowing it?! It’s like no one knows how to keep up with it or doesn’t want to take the time to learn about it.
So my beef is this – while hair and make-up and dress is up is super fun, why does a 10 year old need to wear make-up to school? While having a crush on another girl is totally endearing, why does that make it okay for a parent to let a 12 year old boy be in a room with a girl… with the door closed?! While learning technology is fantastic in this rapidly evolving world, why is it okay to let kids have free reign on devices and watch whatever they want? While exposing kids to different stories and cultures is a great learning experience, why do they need to see R rated movies before they are mature enough?
I have compassion for parents today because it’s harder. It really is. There is so much more to be scared of and I’m sure there are many people that say, “No, we just hear about it more, but it’s the same.” I’m sorry but, no! The availability of seeing anything (and I mean anything) you want is so fricken easy today.
I feel that conversations need to be more frequent and parents need to stay current and aware. Hey, I love feeling sexy and I’m all about people embracing their sexuality, but how about first being mature enough to handle it and understand it.
And that’s my Wednesday beef. And what goes better with beef than a smooth glass of Cabernet…
To go along with this post, I’d recommend this book by Diane E. Levin and Jean Kilbourne to any parents dealing with similar situations.
Check it out here: So Sexy So Soon
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