[blparent] sassy children

[Veronica Smith]

One more comment, if you act like blindness is not a big deal, then it's
not.  Gab thinks I can do anything, and she's right I can. Smile! V

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Amy Murillo-Hicks
Sent: Saturday, July 18, 2009 10:15 AM
To: blparent at nfbnet.org
Subject: [blparent] sassy children

Just to add some additional thoughts to the sassy children  subject.


1.  This is so particularly hurtful coming from our own children.  We give
them everything including our whole hearts souls and all of our dreams.  So
much of our own ego is wrapped up in everything they do.  We deal with the
blindness ignorance crap every day from everyone else and to get it thrown
back at us from our own must be so much more of a slap in the face to us as
parents.  
2.  If blindness is a non issue in the home, then it should in turn be a non
issue to the child.  The question then becomes where is it coming in.  Kids
pick up everything and internalize it, spit it back out and see how it plays
with their most important audience,  us as parents.  

I am really really fortunate in not having to deal with this with my kids
because I think I made a conscious effort to be sure my kids when they were
little have no contact with anyone who would demean my ability to parent.
Some would say that I was being unrealistic and that it will come up later
and then be a problem.  What I can tell you is when my oldest was in Sunday
school at age 4 and the subject of Jesus healing the blind came up, my child
got in an argument with  his teacher and said that the blind people had
nothing wrong with them and neither did his mom.   This pattern continues in
other situations to this day.  When we encountered people on the street who
would make unthinking comments, we would talk about it right away.  

I saw this is being the same for my oldest child who is bi-racial with his
father absent.  I needed to work extra hard in instilling in him a sense of
pride in who he is.

Teaching about pride and surrounding ourselves with good role models so far
has been really key for us.  

Also catching them when they do bad stuff when you are in another room
doesn't hurt either.l..

Just more comments from the peanut gallery.

Amy M-H
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