Let children sleep

With the boon of the internet came globalization and 24/7 commerce. Do we know how to handle all this business?

I could probably find research on a number of benefits and disadvantages of a 24/7 society. However, I would like to relate it to our children and our responsibility to educate and socialize them to be successful inheritors and stewards of this world. I happen to work in a 24/7 establishment and see firsthand how parents are disadvantaging their children by depriving them of adequate sleep. On any given school night, one can find elementary, middle, and high school aged children with a parent browsing, milling about, and searching for nothing in particular or shopping for items that, in my opinion, could have waited for another shopping opportunity. I might be a bit more understanding if the late night shopping was to get medicine or food, but that is not the case.

For example, one early morning at around 2 a.m. on a week night, I encountered a man with a girl who appeared to be about 7 years old. The girl was so tired that she wore it on her face. Dark circles were under her eyes and her father was offering to buy her a craft item or toy. She was so tired that she could not get excited about any of his suggestions for purchase. About an hour later, I encountered them again and the girl was riding in the shopping cart and her father was chatting on the phone with her mother.

In some cases the children can be heard begging their parents to go home. Two teenaged girls were with their mother who was checking out all the new body washes and shampoos. The older girl wanted to go home. The younger one did, too, as evident by her leaning on anything she could find that would support her weary body. The older one started again to entice her mother to leave the store by reminding her mother that it was past her curfew and that she needed to get some sleep. Dad even called on the cell phone and wondered when they were going to come home. At about 1 a.m., the trio finally left the store without purchasing anything.

What are these parents thinking!!! How can a child get up early in the morning and learn the day's lessons in school on less than 8-10 hours sleep. The fact is, that they cannot. Schooling takes discipline and total engagement in activities.

These parents are child abusers. I'm sure that many of them do not realize to what extent that they are harming and disadvantaging their children. However, the fact remains, they are stunting their children's growth emotionally, psychologically, and socially. These parents should put their children's needs above their own and make sure that they are given every advantage to learn and become all that they can be. Adequate sleep is a key component in the process of becoming productive citizens.

Let the children sleep. We will all benefit from their growth into healthy contributors to the 24/7 global society in due time.

Just Plain Annoying

In a recent interview I was asked to state something that annoyed me. Of course, if given the time I could probably create a lengthy list of annoying things, but to my dismay I could not think of anything that seemed appropriate to the context.

I've had a few days to ponder what does annoy me and I shall start a list (The order really has no significance. If truth be told, they are all pretty annoying and each one could vie for first place). Won't you add to this post things that annoy you?

1. Slothfulness. Your lack of effort not only is a poor reflection on you, but it is making the rest of the team pull, drag, and otherwise work harder to get the job done.
2. Spitting. In the past week there have been two occassions in which a male shopper saw fit to spit tobacco juices on the floor (at least that's what I think it was - and I'm not going to test it!). Not only is this gross and disgusting, but I consider it a health hazard. I confronted the second male and asked him if he made it a habit to spit on other people's floor. "Sometimes," he replied with not a hint of shame.
3. Inappropriate cell phone usage. It is my opinion that cell phone users should not talk on the phone in elevators and waiting rooms (talking over the conversations of others and the television program that is there to distract me from crisis). How rude! If your conversation is important to take at that moment, get off the elevator or leave the waiting room and go to a place where you do not interrupt the peace of others.
4. Distracted drivers. I'm tired of trying to dodge distracted drivers on the road. I don't know whether it is safer to be behind the woman putting on her make-up or get in front of her. It is quite obvious that she is looking at herself and not the traffic. Cell phone users fall in this category as well. There are accessories and features on your cell phone to make it more safe to drive while talking and dialing -- use them, or just pull off the road!! I'm sure that each of these drivers believe that they are in full control of their vehicle, but they are most definitely causing a flight or fight response in me.

Well, that's enough ranting for now. Why don't you post some things that annoy you? Maybe I'll remember one for the next interview.

Imprinting

In late March 2008, the major news networks picked up a human interest story from Muenster, Germany. In early May 2006, Petra, a black swan, flew into Aasee pond and shortly afterwards fell in love with a white swan paddle boat five times her size. She was fiercely protective of her "mate" and would chase off other boaters who came too near to her beloved. It was determined that the best thing for Petra was to move her and her "mate" to a pond in a nearby zoo. When Petra was courted by a white male swan, she abandoned the boat, and the plan seemed to be a success . So, the swan paddle boat was returned to its owner. Then one day the white swan flew off with another mate. Petra mourned the loss so much that arrangements were made to return the paddle boat to her.

Petra had imprinted on a huge plastic swan. "When an animal learns something very fast because a certain event occurring at the right time manages to trigger the learning process, it's called imprinting" (http://www.backyardnature.net/birdprnt.htm). The imprint had caused Petra to behave in ways that are not intended for swans to behave. Some of her behaviors were very swanlike, but her attachment to the swan paddle boat was not. We do not know why she arrived at the pond, nor what circumstances directly effected her unusual behavior.

What happened in this story is analagous to our spiritual journeys. All of us are created in the image of God, but we have the imprint of the fallen nature of Adam and the multitude of life's experiences that effect us for the better and for worse, too. Things can happen to us "very fast" and at critical times in our young lives that change us. Because of these imprints, we are not able to behave (do) nor be (our essence) as God intended. We may not be aware of why we do what we do. However, to become like God intended us to be, it is necessary to believe in the cleansing power of Christ's shed blood and grow in His grace.

Just Lie

I was getting instructions for my responsibilities at a trade show. The manager was trying to make the job sound like it would be easy. I just had to answer buyer's and sales reps' questions on candy and gum. It didn't sound hard, but I usually just take a job now and again for Hershey to reset product in convenience stores. How was I to know how well and in what markets certain candy and gum performed? "Just lie," the manager said with a chuckle. I couldn't believe his response. Silence ensued as I attempted to formulate a response, but it was broken by an offer to send me sales details. I thanked him for helping me to prepare for this assignment, and the call was soon ended.

In addition to self condemnation for my apparent inability to think quickly on my feet, I regretted that I did not take hold of an opportunity to share my faith. There have been liars since the beginning of recorded history, but it never ceases to amaze me how depraved the ethical and moral fabric of our society has become. "Just lie" ... and we wonder why there is so much mistrust in the workplace ... Enron scenarios ... and, and, and ...

Getting Started

For years, at least it seems like years, I have contemplated the venture of blogging. Being a rather private individual, the idea of a public personal journal is not an attractive option. However, a platform in which I can express my thoughts in an environment is attractive. The concept of inviting people to make constructive points and counterpoints to these ideas so that I may learn in community intrigues me enough to give it a try. I really do think that we learn more through discovery and dialogue with others. I love my books and to read, but I really like discussing them with others more.

Now, where should I begin? As soon as I got everything set up, I couldn't think of a thing that I wanted to write about, or that I thought would be a great representation of what I hope would become of this venture. (I do have perfectionistic tendencies that result in writers block and over analysis.)

So, let's just keep this simple. What do you think about my blogging concept?