Letting Our Children Interact With A Normal Environment
The human race has survived because we nurture our children for so many years. The danger lies in our becoming so over-protective that while stunting the natural curiosity of our youngsters, we stop their development on many different levels. There is no hard and fast rule as to what explorations we should allow or prohibit. Every parent struggles with this fine balance using his own set of criteria. Just look at how we treat our newborns.
Frail newborns need protection from infection. Parents feel a sense of security when they provide a baby bath, special bath linens and all the baby cleaning products which appear in babies’ nurseries world wide. The idea of using the regular bathroom towels and facecloths never enters their minds. Sometimes these concerns become so important to parents that they lose all common sense about it. They focus only on the negative notion of germs targeting their child. They forget that children must build up some resistance to bacteria in order to survive.
It is always fun to look at the sweet little baby oriented linens available. Who could resist all the pictures and colors designed for baby’s enjoyment? But when the first set of linens is discarded, the infant will benefit from being allowed to use the regular household linens shared by the family. The germs he encounters will help to teach his system how to deal with germs. There is no need to use soaps designed to kill bacteria. If the child never encounters the mild, common pathogens, how can he adapt to them?
Modern child care safety standards are saving countless children from injury and death. First time parents go to enormous lengths to ensure their little one’s freedom from danger. Baby safety monitors are being used to allow parents to keep an ear on their youngsters at all times. Baby’s sterile food supply is sure to be closely monitored also. A mother can use an electric breast pump to express her own life-promoting milk for use when she is elsewhere. Car travelers must install approved child safety seats for their children. These precautions are all saving children’s lives.
However, safety must be tempered with a slight element of risk if the child is ever going to learn to make good decisions. As he enters the toddler stage he must be allowed to experiment within reason to see what his environment can offer.
It is always difficult to watch someone we love suffer a setback. But we must allow our children to tackle a few new things and discover the inherent problems. That is how they learn.
It is time to allow Junior to try climbing that back yard tree. Stick around and stay close. Encourage his efforts to conquer the climb. It will be worth patching up a skinned knee if he learns to test branch strength before going out on a limb.