This thread is really challenging my thoughts. As an older person, I do relate to the fact that standards for what was considered within "the norm" in regard to child discipline, etc. have changed over the years. At the same time, I feel that there are still models of child-rearing presently being taught that even now contain the seeds of extreme and unreasonable child-rearing methods, such as "Growing Kids God's Way", or whatever other name that method is now being given. I feel that too many parents tend to think of their children as their "property", and that leads to treating them in unkind ways ... beginning with letting a hungry infant cry helplessly in their crib because the parent wants to be able to sleep through the night, so the child must be conditioned to do so. Not for the good of the baby, but for the convenience of the parent. I am searching my own heart and memories, thinking about how often my own treatment of my precious children had more to do with what was convenient for me, rather than what was best for them. Or being driven more by putting on a good appearance to others rather than the needs of my kids. "Oh, your children are so well behaved!" Isn't that what we all wanted to hear? So we controlled them with the fear of "Mr Helper", the infamous paddle that was modeled to us as young parents in NTM training. (There was a "Mr Helper" hanging in the toddler room, for the use of other adults on the tender bottom of my 18-month-old! Dear God, why did we accept that????) This philosophy set us up for all that our children suffered. Who should be held accountable for such abuses? All of us are guilty. There are so many thoughts in my head about the closed, cult-like mentality of NTM and how it has fostered the abuse of our most valuable gifts from God ... our own children. My heart is very heavy about this and I feel I could type forever .... so many facets of this and such an unhealthy atmosphere that we all participated in. Terrible. Sad. Terribly sad.
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