Random Thoughts by Pauline

April 11 2014, Friday 

Parents of Teenagers

This is another MTR story. 

 

I was at the Tsim Sha Tsui East Station going down the escalator to the platform for the train to Kowloon Tong on a Sunday afternoon. I couldn’t help overhearing the conversation of the middle-aged couple standing two steps behind me.

 

“I talked to Katie last night and she agreed! She promised she and David would only hold hands and no kisses!” said the woman, perhaps a mother.

 

“You actually believe her? Look at the TV drama she is watching – all the kisses and sex scenes!” exclaimed the man, perhaps a father.

 

“Well, what can we do! She is 15 and we cannot watch her all day long!” sighed the mother.

 

Children have been brought up in fairy tales of the prince and the princess and all the gossips about who is dating whom in the entertainment world! When a boy meets a girl, and this is happening every day in school, they are teased and in a way encouraged to start what they think is “dating”. Parents should be concerned but instead of stopping or reprimanding their children, they should broaden their social life such as joining weekend classes, hiking or other sports.

 

In Chinese, there is a saying: bringing up a child to a hundred years old, you worry for 99 years! There is so much truth in it except why not that 1 year too?