So, I had an encounter today that disturbed me. I was in Barnes & Noble, having a lusty look-around and trying to vain to talk myself out of buying anything. I mean, the price of physical books has truly skyrocketed with the rise of eBooks. Sixteen bucks for a 200 page paperback? I think not, thank you very much (I bought it anyway). Anyway, as I was meandering the shelves a loud, angry voice broke my book-induced reverie.
"Stop it! Stop touching it and watch it."
I looked up to see a mother, leaning angrily over a stroller, scolding a child (probably not more than three years old) and shoving some kind of tablet/iPhone into the child's hands. The child had been trying to use the touch screen instead of watching the movie that was playing on it.
"Watch it," she repeated. The viciousness I heard in her voice was startling.
And all I could think was this: If she didn't want the kid playing with her 400 dollar tablet, she shouldn't have given it to the child. My second thought...she was scolding her child for attempting to interact with his/her environment. When they left the house everyday, did the child ever get to see or interact with the world around him/her? Or did this parent, because it was easier, thrust a movie into this baby's hands every day, all day, and then yell at her child when he/she tried to do anything else? Now, it was a fallacious thought; I have no idea what this mother does on a regular basis.
Additionally, I'm not a parent. I don't have any right to judge an overwrought mother in a public place, who is struggling to get through a busy day with a toddler in tow. For a time, I did babysit a six-month old, and I quickly realized how exhausting it is to have to hold your bladder for four hours straight and go without sleep or eating because of the constant attention babies require. When you get those sweet little bundles to stop their heart-wrenching wails, you will do anything in your power to make sure it stays that way.
So although I can forgive the mother for having a bad day, the interaction still haunts me, because it reflects a bigger problem in our society. That mother may not use the TV as a babysitter every day, but I know that many parents do, busy as they are trying to make ends meet in this poor economy. It makes me sad to think that some children are being raised by electronic devices, rather than warm bodies. I can't help but think of the consequences of this, of having a generation whose formative years were spent in complete social isolation. Twenty years from now, what ripple effect will this have on our country's future?
Hours have passed, but the thought of it still fills me with disgust and pity.
"Stop it! Stop touching it and watch it."
I looked up to see a mother, leaning angrily over a stroller, scolding a child (probably not more than three years old) and shoving some kind of tablet/iPhone into the child's hands. The child had been trying to use the touch screen instead of watching the movie that was playing on it.
"Watch it," she repeated. The viciousness I heard in her voice was startling.
And all I could think was this: If she didn't want the kid playing with her 400 dollar tablet, she shouldn't have given it to the child. My second thought...she was scolding her child for attempting to interact with his/her environment. When they left the house everyday, did the child ever get to see or interact with the world around him/her? Or did this parent, because it was easier, thrust a movie into this baby's hands every day, all day, and then yell at her child when he/she tried to do anything else? Now, it was a fallacious thought; I have no idea what this mother does on a regular basis.
Additionally, I'm not a parent. I don't have any right to judge an overwrought mother in a public place, who is struggling to get through a busy day with a toddler in tow. For a time, I did babysit a six-month old, and I quickly realized how exhausting it is to have to hold your bladder for four hours straight and go without sleep or eating because of the constant attention babies require. When you get those sweet little bundles to stop their heart-wrenching wails, you will do anything in your power to make sure it stays that way.
So although I can forgive the mother for having a bad day, the interaction still haunts me, because it reflects a bigger problem in our society. That mother may not use the TV as a babysitter every day, but I know that many parents do, busy as they are trying to make ends meet in this poor economy. It makes me sad to think that some children are being raised by electronic devices, rather than warm bodies. I can't help but think of the consequences of this, of having a generation whose formative years were spent in complete social isolation. Twenty years from now, what ripple effect will this have on our country's future?
Hours have passed, but the thought of it still fills me with disgust and pity.
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