I do gripe about the teenagers and their attitudes but they aren't all "bad". I've managed to raise girls that speak up for themselves and not cower in corners and I'm proud of it. While Hannah made the biggest change in speaking up for herself, it is Kate that has become a self-appointed defender of the weak or the Devil's Advocate when she feels the need. I'm big on teaching tolerance and I believe I was a bit stronger in teaching it because my Ex's family are some of the most prejudice people I know. Luckily, my Ex is not but the girls do spend every other weekend around his family and the ex will not say anything to his family about their comments. My girls are big enough now to deal on their own and they do most of the time trying to not be disrespectful.
I bring this up because Kate has been in two arguments in the last week dealing with religion. I haven't been called into the school yet but I foresee at least one trip this year for a conference for her outspoken ways. I don't mind to be honest but I think teachers do not expect girls to be so vocal. They expect it from boys but not girls. Kate took on a boy's comments about several different religions not going to Heaven because they weren't members of his church. His quoting scripture to back the comments up was what put Kate over the edge. She said she "tore" into him and told him he was misinterpreting the Bible to make his views right and that was wrong. She admitted it got ugly and their history teacher just let the debate go on for a good portion of class. Kate and the boy have known each other since they were very small and now they aren't speaking. Kate feels bad but she said she couldn't handle him saying who could and couldn't go to heaven and she knew he made several people in the class feel bad. Now he's going around calling her bad names and saying she isn't a Christian. She's hurt over that comment. We had a bad experience at our old church and she's never gotten over it completely. She's told me if this is how Christians are going act she is never going back to church. It's tearing me up to hear this but I know not all is lost. Yesterday, Kate was asked to give a description of Jesus in History class and she said "He's my Lord and Savior, the Son of God and He died for all of us so we can go to Heaven". This wasn't the answer the teacher wanted and she didn't get the answer correct. She didn't care and she says she'll be putting on the exam today too. She's given me some hard times lately but I'm proud of my girl. I really don't believe she'll be throwing me into a nursing home as soon as I hit 60 now...even though she says she's going to.
4 comments:
I would LOVE to have such a friend as Kate, being that grounded and confident and honest. Hell, I can't find someone like that my age, much less hers!
Good luck to them all--and to you when the school office calls LOL
They sound to me like two honest, thoughtful, sensible girls who are not afraid to speak their mind - could it be that they take after their mother by any chance?
My ex, the one that's the father of my daughters used to get such anxiety attacks about their future, saying he wanted to wrap them up in cotton wool at birth... Me? oh, virago, loud virago at times. He was from a RC background and neither they nor I come anywhere near what he thinks a female ought to be like. No wonder his four sisters tied him to a tree when he was nine.
Hey Susan, I know how you feel about the friend thing. I've had one close friend since grade school and that that's it. People change and lives change but the ones that stick around are diamonds.
Weaver- I hope I'm doing right with them. It's a weird world out there and I want them to be grounded just as my mother did we her two daughters.
Lizzie- Gosh, we may have had cloned husbands! My ex was so upset when the girls wanted to play soccer that he wouldn't go to any games or practices forever. pride finally won him over but in his upbringing girls were cheerleaders and majorettes. My girls have given their father quite an education.
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