Weird parenting for 900, Alex
I drove Em over to a friend's house tonight, and by the time I got there I was in tears. No, my child didn't upset me that much, at least not directly. It was what she told me about one of her other best friends.
I knew that Olivia had told her parents she wanted to wait to see the Harry Potter movie with Emily. I didn't know about all the other strings attached to this. Em revealed today that Olivia's parents agreed to take her to see the HP movie if she tried to get a job in the meantime. And learning to drive was somehow part of the deal, too, I'm too messed up tonight to recall exactly how. Anyway, Olivia tried, and by the time the movie came out had not succeeded, but anyway her parents said, "We're not taking you anyway".
Wait a minute. How can you expect a teenage child to deal straightforwardly with the world, if you won't do likewise with them? How can you renege, if she made good her end of the bargain? These are the same people, by the way, who manipulated her into going to the prom, even though she didn't want to.
Honest to God, I could understand these kind of tactics if she were an overweight 27-year-old scarfing down Cheese Doodles, sleeping on the basement sofa, and avoiding getting a job. But she's at most 17, for Christ's sake, a slender competitor in track, a sweet, decent and earnest young woman. And how many adults looking for jobs these days succeed? People need to get a clue, and give their kids a break.
I knew that Olivia had told her parents she wanted to wait to see the Harry Potter movie with Emily. I didn't know about all the other strings attached to this. Em revealed today that Olivia's parents agreed to take her to see the HP movie if she tried to get a job in the meantime. And learning to drive was somehow part of the deal, too, I'm too messed up tonight to recall exactly how. Anyway, Olivia tried, and by the time the movie came out had not succeeded, but anyway her parents said, "We're not taking you anyway".
Wait a minute. How can you expect a teenage child to deal straightforwardly with the world, if you won't do likewise with them? How can you renege, if she made good her end of the bargain? These are the same people, by the way, who manipulated her into going to the prom, even though she didn't want to.
Honest to God, I could understand these kind of tactics if she were an overweight 27-year-old scarfing down Cheese Doodles, sleeping on the basement sofa, and avoiding getting a job. But she's at most 17, for Christ's sake, a slender competitor in track, a sweet, decent and earnest young woman. And how many adults looking for jobs these days succeed? People need to get a clue, and give their kids a break.