Ran across a news story about children jailed for an armed holdup. At the time of the robbery, they were all 14 years old!! My first question was, “where are the parents?”. The article mentions that the three children were cousins, but makes no mention of parents or guardians. Could it have happened in my family, sure. My girls had plenty of time to plan this sort of thing. I had hoped, and still hope that the lessons they were taught earlier in life were and still are with them when they aren’t in my sight.
So, I guess I do have another question. Should the parents/guardians be held responsible for this? My thoughts on this are mixed and still in the formative stages. Many things point to, yes hold the parents responsible. But another part of me wonders, when are the children old enough to take responsibility for there own actions. Parents can be completely in the dark about some of the things their children do. This does not have to be an indication that they don’t pay attention. Some children are just really good at hiding things from Mom and Dad. So, I guess I still don’t know…
Parents (IMHO) need to TAKE THE TIME to teach their children the difference between right and wrong. After attempting to do that, the parent(s) can do nothing but hope that they taught them well. They cannot be with their little ones at all times. If properly educated, I would say that the children in question should have known better.
Parents just need to take the time, period. Be with the kids, talk to them, teach them, but above all just be there. Unfortunately in this age it’s harder than it sounds, what with single-parent homes, dual incomes just to survive, but if the parents are there when they can there is more likelihood of kids growing up right.
And raise them knowing the Lord of course. 🙂
Just my own thoughts as a non-parent, BTW.