What Happens When Protecting Our Kids Teaches Them to Never Protect Themselves?
When my second-grader’s shoe comes untied, or my kindergartner’s coat needs zipping, I don’t immediately kneel down and do it for them. They’re old enough to manage these things on their own, and though they may get frustrated at times, it’s a necessary lesson in personal responsibility. Same deal when shots are fired. I could throw myself in front of them the moment someone starts shooting in their direction, but then I’m not exactly preparing them for life, am I?
Obviously, I wouldn’t be doing my kids any favors if I sent them out into the world not knowing how to sustain a gunshot wound to the chest.
Sometimes it’s your job as a parent to stand back and say, “You got this, buddy!” Whether your child is learning to ride a bike, heading off to camp for the first time, or bleeding out because multiple shots have perforated their torso, it can be hard to watch them struggle. After all, there may be a few tears! But before you know it, they’re figuring out how to balance on two wheels, make new friends, or tear their shirt into strips to stanch the flow of blood until paramedics arrive.
Unfortunately, today’s helicopter parents have other ideas, hovering overhead and swooping in the moment their child faces adversity. You know the type— they intervene any time their kid has an argument with a friend, gets a bad grade, or doesn’t make a sports team. Well, they do the same thing in an active-shooter situation. Believe it or not, some parents will literally throw themselves on top of an armed assailant to ensure their child doesn’t take a single stray bullet.
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