Safe Places, Nowhere?

Is there any place where we feel our kids are safe?  Where our kids can just enjoy their childhood, without fear?

Aa chal ke tujhe, main le ke chaluun

Ik aise gagan ke tale

Bas pyaar hii pyaar pale

This is exactly what I want to say to my kids. But is there any place like this in the present times. It’s not that I am saying it was all love and no hatred, crime, unhappiness during my childhood but it was definitely better than the childhood our kids have.

I don’t know whether my mom was ever scared of sending me to school, or any tuition class. I don’t remember my mom checking on me when I was playing in the neighborhood.

We used to watch television without anyone checking on us. Because my mom was not worried that we will be watching anything we shouldn’t.  But I have to always be with my kids nowadays while they are watching television because don’t know what will suddenly pop up even in a channel which is as harmless as cartoon network.

Never miss real stories from India's women.

Register Now

We never had homework where we had to google. Most homework these days is such that the internet has to be used and I have to be with the kids because so many unwanted sites open up.

When we did anything wrong we were punished or made aware of the consequences in such a way that we would never dare to repeat our mistakes. Even at school, our teachers took care that even the most notorious child was punished in such a way that it was not detrimental to him/her.

I know all of you who are reading this must be thinking what am I trying to say. This write-up is because of a video which was forwarded to me recently in many WhatsApp groups. Little boys, I think mostly 10 year old, were caught smoking in the school premises.

I was so upset after watching the video because

1. The kids were so small that I don’t think they even know what they were doing.

2.  Their act was being recorded and circulated instead of teaching them what is right and wrong.

Some kids may come out of it but some of them may get affected by the sudden exposure.

Whoever was recording on the camera is the person is who needs to be punished, not the little ones.

Coming back to what I actually want to say is, is there any place where we feel our kids are safe?  Where our kids can just enjoy their childhood, without fear?

Earlier Published here.

Image Source – Pexels

Comments