Letter to the Editor: Dear Moms
I don’t know which season of parenting you are in at this time in your life. Therefore, I do not know the particular challenges you are having.
I am not an active parent now, but I’m an active grandmother. I’m a senior citizen. I’ve had some years of opportunities to learn and to know something about life and how it works.
I am aware that we have changed, re-arranged, renamed, reframed, and redefined some attitudes, definitions, perceptions, and expectations. But, I know in my heart of hearts that this has not been all good. There are some core values, some fundamental and foundational matters that should have remained unchanged.
Personally, I have chosen to hold fast to that which has held us together as spouses, families, communities, states, and a nation. There is one observation I’ve made about human nature, if we choose to make changes in the now, we’ll have to make more in the later. Why… that’s human nature.
So, I say to you Moms, decide what or who will determine your changes or your NO changes. Personally, I’ve decided to allow God’s word, the Bible, to be my source for definitions and moral compass for direction in these value storms of the 21st century.
Moms, behavior still can be sinful, shameful, disgraceful, or disrespectable. Ask yourself this: What’s respectable about our sons and daughters being school drop outs, unwed parents, delinquents, criminals, or jobless? What’s good about any behavior or lifestyle that ignores moral standards, laws, and the rules of the schools or nature’s biological designs? Yes, we love our children, but they can make us shame, cause us pain, suffering, and take many dollars from us and from the taxpayers.
I know we DON’T want to hurt anybody’s feeling or make others feel uncomfortable. But it is true, we cannot eat our cake and have it, too. We cannot establish purpose for life, strengthen commitment, and develop strong character without some shared meanings, common goals, and expectations. If there are no challenges, no substantive goals for the good life, we will have no way to motivate OR inspire our youngsters to strive for excellence.
Moms, what are we going to do? We have to do the hard thing – be consistent in our Godly example and say what needs to be said, do what needs to be done, pray, trust God, rest in Him, and refuse to worry. Amen.
Caring,
– Jannie B. Johnson
(A Mom & Grandmomma, too)
