I witnessed something today that made me feel bad for the kid and the parents. It wasn't the typical sit down or I'll spank you, of course I HATE that one.
It was a baby/toddler I'm thinking maybe 2 years old sitting in the cart saying loudly *batteries, batteries, I need batteries* Get batteries, where's the batteries*
We were at the spice section, I was looking for cinnamon and the dad was in front of it but he noticed me before I could say excuse me.
He said oh I'm sorry, I said no problem.
He told the mom to tell the kid to shut up. So she tells him to shut up he keeps talking about batteries....
Then the dad says *Will you shut the hell up* pretty loudly...
I understand the frustration that can happen having young kids in the store. I've been shopping with kids for over 15 years now.
I'm pretty positive that I've never said shut the hell up to my toddler.
Part of me wanted to say something in defense of the child but I just kept walking.
I saw them again in another aisle and the little boy wasn't yelling about batteries anymore.
It just made me stop and think to make sure I am aware of what I say to my kids.
I get frustrated, who doesn't?
It's important to be mindful of our words.
I encourage all of you to just stop and think about how you talk to your children.
Sometimes I say something and wish I hadn't and I apologize for sounding mean.
Being aware is the first step to changing.
Kids remember these things, I remember all sorts of crap that was said to me, it sticks with you.
2 comments:
:(
this makes me hurt for that boy, and yes for his parents. They had to have been treated that way to treat their child that way, too. It's just a hard, sad cycle.
ITA, being aware is the first step.
And you know what's REALLY sad about that? Not just the cruelty of the parents there, but the totally wasted opportunity to praise the kid... I mean, how many two-year-olds know the word "batteries"? It's moments like that that help build relationships between parents and children and encourage learning (in this case, learning to talk, which is a pretty important skill), and these parents didn't even notice how awesome their baby was.
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