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Show at four, and Ruth's dresses need the hems let a dental appointment Brannard Davison by Sarah from BUek Star Photos: ArcKio 0brmn I If my mother and dad read this, they'll probably say, "Gracious, but our little Sarah has grown." I have, but it's taken 34 years, including college, work, marriage, and two children, for rrie to find out how the other half lives. By the other half, I mean parents members of those society who deserve a better break than they're getting. Right now I feel that I'm very much one of . them, helped by the ' endearifig" remarks of my children. Eddie, for instance, described his first-grateacher, who is 25, as "pretty old." You know what that makes me! When Ruthie was put out because I. refused to buy her a new doll, she said, "I always knew you were bad. If you loved me, you'd want me to be happy." The dishes are still in the sink. The car battery is dead. Eddie has much-maligne- dx de Ifl must discover, tactfully, what happened to the change John left on his dresser, and whyj my children are constantly fighting the Wilson kids down the block. My parents know the lines of this play by heart, but I'm still rehearsing, and sometimes miss my cues. I was in the wings for so long, and from the child's vantage point the role of parenthood looks different. I remember the time I came home from that course in psychology, an expert in child care, and tolq them J-J- the error of their ways! "When I have children," I said, 'things --will Be different. I won't stuff them with healthful foods they hate. I will never spank them. And I surely will never play household cop, waiting up to see when they check in from their dates." "Well," my mother said patiently, "we'll see how you feel when you have children of your own." Mother and Dad are both much too nice to say, "I told you so," but the truth is they did. Their little Sarah now frets about vitamins. She hates chewing gum left. in the pockets of down. 1 -- time says a defiant mother. i S .r- - 1 'J: '. Iff ii .4 :.'ir,.!:.v;n P Y h'7 , ce I was all for these experts. Someone else was the target then. Now I am, and it's no longer funny. As a teen-ag- er I " f lt " , Y ;- --- - ' . irlv r ' , " Y m ry yy ff': M-l- J .:-i , ' . jHI yy kj " ' 111 u ' " " y? i wn 'I , J Last week, for example, I went to a meeting and heard a sociologist discuss juvenile delinquency. "Troubled boys come from troubled homes," he explained. "Over the years we've learned that there are no delinquent children. There are only delinquent parents." The week before that I picked up the newspaper and discovered why Johnny can't read. Bad eyesight or poor teaching? No, the answer is as simple as A B C. The child is emotionally disturbed. Emotional problems relate to the home, and it is Mom who keeps Johnnie from reading what Philip" Wylie writes about her. athlete Not long ago a well-knoreported that far too many American children are soft; that a shocking proportion flunk out on military fitness tests. Why? It's simple. Parents pamper them, keep them out of competitive athletics. About the same time a group of doctors announced that parents, especially, those of grammar-scho- ol youngsters, were straining their children's endurance by stressing the need to win on the playing field. Which group of experts do jyan In "Defens e of for all of Junior's shortcomings, -- Regularly at 4:30 p.m. she her temper. I've spanked for leaving fireflies in my and for raiding a dessert prepared for company:"" By the time Ruth is old enough to go out with boys, I'll probably make John learn their "intentions." If they're too shy to answer, it's a safe bet I'll find out by acting as chaperone. Oh, yes, I took the courses and I know the theories. I try, every day in every way, but I know now that this is a big job, with long hours, little pay, and a lot of critics. I guess it's the sideline experts J, (often single) who bother me most They must have badgered JMother and Father too, but somehow they're better organized today. They write books,, preach sermons run schools, courts, and social-serviagencies. of ills out the rooted society They've in general and of Tommy Jones in particular, and when they explain all the reasons, their fingers always point to the home and to me. jeans. loses Eddie shoes, v . '"j.'j, bills. Mos parenfs, says author, are deeply conscientious, devoting 20 years of their lives to each child. Devotion includes such unsung duties as worrying over :i . Family Weekly, May 18, 1958 |