I've been thinking for a long time that I have things to say and maybe I should write them down . . . And so it begins.
The thought for tonight is on friendship. More importantly, female friendship. You see I know several grown women who keep, and even fight for, pseudo-friendships while consistently alienating the people who really care about them. They have surrounded themselves with women who only take advantage and hurt. Some of these women are just plain mean. Now, as an adult, I guess you do have the right to hang out with people who generally suck. I think it's lame that these women hurt good people in their quest to basically be the popular high school girl . . . in their 40's. With all of that being said, what really bothers me is that these women have daughters. And the example they are setting for their daughters is just plain dangerous. Having friends is the most important thing. You must keep all friends at any cost. Never mind that they call you names, take advantage of you and don't support you. You are lucky to be in their "circle." That whole line of thinking disgusts me. Girl culture is hard enough to navigate as a young teen without having such poor relationships modeled for you.
We live in a world of constant connection. We see stories nearly everyday about children being bullied; in some cases to the point that they take their own lives. If as grown women we model for our children, young girls especially, that it is okay to bully, or that you are supposed to take being bullied as a sign of "friendship," where can we ever expect this cycle to end? Making the choice to have children means that you have to pay attention to everything you do because they are watching you. If you wouldn't want your child treated that way, why on earth would you allow yourself to be treated that way? By allowing it, you only tell your children that the behavior is okay, and heck, maybe they should even expect it. What a sad, sad thing to teach your child.
And that's enough for tonight . . .
