Blind Sided Thought

I don’t often base things on Hollywood, however under the right circumstance I feel movies like music can invoke more than just entertainment.

The movie is The Blind Side, based on a true story it’s about how a wealthy family adopts a boy who ends up being an exceptional football player. Now I may not be a member of a wealthy family, and I have yet to become an amazing athlete. However I do relate to the story… I too lack a biological mother as a role model, I have had multiple “moms” influence me to my current path and I will admit that this relation moved me a bit and left me thinking about how I got where I am today.

I took the thought a step further and instead of how I got to my current situation, how do children manage to comeback from great adversity? Children live for the moment in a lot of ways, scrape their knee and the next day they are climbing trees and performing various acts that could wind up in further injury… however they do it because it’s fun and fun is the most important part of being a kid. The same is true for emotional trauma, we all experienced the loss of a pet as a child and although we may have been sad for a week, month maybe? In the end we were able to overcome the feelings and move on.

Now I’m not saying we all need to adopt the next child we see, but take the time to be there for a child. Even if you don’t have your own children you can still be a positive influence of change! Why not volunteer for a childrens charity? Or get involved with your local big brothers, big sisters? Even small involvement could have profound effects on a childs future can you remember an experience or a person who helped you as a child?

Hyper Parenting: More isn't better

It doesn’t matter if your gen. X, Y, millennial, or boomer. We all share a common responsibility of creating a healthy environment to raise our children… but what if the biggest issue isn’t external but parents themselves? Over the next few entries I’d like to consider the future of kids.

Hyper Parenting is becoming a dangerous trend, rather than allowing kids to make their own choices parents instead have created schedules for every aspect of their childs life. This trend began with the discovery that our brains make more connections in the first years of our life compared to any other time of our lives. Business capitalized on this, creating hundreds of systems with the objective of “training baby” Who doesn’t want to give their child an edge in this competitive world? Although the best intentions these super parents are causing problems that will affect their child well into adulthood.

Children need to lose! I can’t remember when the transition happened but in elementary school we stopped getting first, second, and third instead we got “participation ribbons.” No one was cut from the team and everyone got equal opportunity. When I was younger I would challenge my dad to chess; I lost every single game because he refused to let me win. However, I kept trying and because I tried I learned, without failure and competition kids miss out on valuable skills needed later in the workforce such as persistence, problem solving, and determination.

Generation Y it’s up to us! We we’re raised by hyper parents, but we don’t need to replicate their strategy. We can go back to letting kids be kids, un-structured play, win & lose, freedom to choose and the trust to explore. It’s important to involve children in the choice of what activities they would like to do rather than choosing activities that we feel are necessary to accomplish the “perfect child image.” Humans are imperfect and that’s what makes us unique, by admitting to an imperfection in a child we can truly admire their success.

Sexual offence in BC school

This week a Coquitlam based substitute teacher was charged with sex-related offenses involving children. At this time there are nine confirmed victims however it is speculated that more children have been abused and not yet come forward. Aleksandr Plehanov was a substitute teacher in school district 43 from January 31, 2007 till March 15, 2010 a police investigation began after a concerned parent reported to police that her daughter had been inappropriately touched by a teacher.

Quoting privacy laws the district has not revealed information indicating if Alex is still on payroll since his suspension. I found it outrageous that The B.C. College of Teachers would defend the privacy of Plehanov who has now been charged with sexual interference, sexual exploitation and sexual assault.

If careers involving regular driving require a yearly drivers abstract, why are regular criminal record checks and assessments not required for teachers? We need to demand higher levels of security for people interacting with children. However security is not enough. Proper awareness is also necessary to prevent future repeat offenders going unnoticed.

Inform your local member of parliament that you want to see stricter security checks for individuals who work with children.

To view the whole story and see a list of schools Plehanov taught at:
The Vancouver Sun

The walk to success

Today was the Walk for Kids Help Phone! As always the hot dogs were great, the supporters were amazing, and walkers proved no matter the weather they will always strap on their runners in order to be there for kids.

This year was a tough year for us all, we faced economic adversity and provided aide in the face of other nation’s disaster. Often when we are faced with these difficult times we close our wallets to charity, or perhaps a firmly understood charity is our more likely choice. In my thanks to all the volunteers, corporate sponsors, and walk coordinators who make this incredible event happen, I want to share the difference a dollar can make.

Its New Year’s, a boy is crying again, not because he didn't get the right gift at Christmas but because he’s scared. Unsure what his future is in this world he picks up the phone, he’s not a stranger to 1-800-668-6868 he’s called a few times before. He doesn't wait very long and he hears a familiar voice on the line, a counselor named Sandra they had spoken before. The boy asks if the New Year is worth living. Sandra knows his story, his struggle with an eating disorder, his abusive mom, and his struggle to survive. She doesn't talk down to him, she doesn't intimidate him, and she just listens to his pain. She’s not tracking his call, she doesn't even have call display to know his name she knows his name is Aidan because he trusted enough to tell her. It’s now 12:01 and officially a New Year and before Sandra ends the call she has one last request, for her efforts she kindly asks to have the honor to be the first person I wish a happy New Year to.

Several years have passed and many successes have been made towards my own success. However, every year on May 2nd I walk because I remember the counselors who saved my life. I have volunteered with this organization for 5 years and know the people who continue to play a crucial role in the lives of Canadian children. So I thank the ones who walked so I could talk, and I walk so more will talk!


Pictures from: Walk for Kids Help Phone 2010 (Vancouver, BC)