Recently, I was in a local eatery at o’dark thirty. My daughter and her school project partner were with me. We had to deliver them and the project to school. You know that it’s risky to take a school project on to the bus.
As we were eating breakfast, another student from their school walked in with her Mom. The girls said they did not want her to see them and that she was a mean girl. After this girl and her Mom finished ordering, the Mom suddenly exploded at the child. She was yelling about her mumbling and chastising her for not speaking up. This woman was loud nasty for o’dark thirty. Well, she was loud and nasty for any time of the day actually. Clearly no one is awake at this time, especially tweens and teens. They are practically walking zombies until 11 am anyway.
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This woman’s public display of crassness, poor parenting and rantings were good reminders to me of how not to parent my children. I told the girls that this Mom’s behavior probably explains why this other student is mean. If that is all you hear from your parents, it’s what you become.
I won’t lie. I lose my temper with my children. And, yes, I raise my voice, sometimes more than I care to admit. Parenting children is not for the faint of heart. But this woman’s behavior certainly caught my attention. It was an excellent reminder of how not to act, in public or private.
