Skip to main content

I Wonder....


This is the first year the state of North Carolina did not teach abstinence only as the only form of birth control. Unfortunately, this year’s class was only a week long. Boys and girls separated. Classes of 50 students each. No anonymous question box. No question and answer period. No risk-taking in the classroom on the part of the students. Very different from the way I used to teach it. Just the delivery of information the way the state wrote it.

While I applaud the fact that NC is facing the fact that kids are having sex, education needs to go further. I heard rumor that FOUR girls in our middle school are pregnant. Will a more open, intensive sex education program make a difference for these girls? Whether it is a home or school, it is time for frank, open discussions about sex and what it means.

Pregnancy is only one result of sex. I wonder how many are sexually active and not pregnant? How many are carrying and sharing hidden STDs that have yet to show themselves? How many think sex is the only way to be ‘loved’ from another person? What is the age difference between the boy and the girl? In the cases I know about, the boys are older. The girls are the ones on my mind right now. How to we teach them that they have value? That love is more than an act in the heat of passion? That a baby will change their lives forever – regardless of whether they choose adoption, abortion, or to keep it?

I have been cautioned repeatedly about letting students read books in which the characters are having sex. (Of course, I throw caution to the wind and keep them on my bookshelves.) We want our children to keep their innocence as long as possible. Therefore, we aren’t supposed talk about the things that might taint them – sex, drugs, gangs, etc… However, they are talking about it amongst themselves.

I believe it is time for the adults in their lives (parents, teachers, etc) to have matter-of-fact honest discussions with them. Will these discussions have an impact on the choices kids make? Maybe not, but at least they know two things: 1) accurate information, and 2) someone cares enough to give them the information.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

WABDR: Section 1

Section 1  We end at the beginning  Does it feel like this trip will never end? Epic adventures tend to last a bit longer than just an average one. So….on with our tale.  We got our bikes all packed up and continued over White Pass. The first time we went over it, it was a cloudy day. Thus, the visibility of the mountains was not much. I was expecting the same on our return trip to Packwood. Therefore, it took my breath away when I saw the mountain off in the distance for the first time. The beauty was so overwhelming, I teared up.    I continued to watch the mountain until I could see it no more. Soon we were in Packwood. Back where we started. After a quick breakfast at the local coffee shop, we were on our way. I may have taken a few minutes to ride the big bike first… Not too long though, because someone was ready to get moving.  Jennifer had some friends that were camping at Walupt Lake, which is right on the trail for Sectio...
Post a Comment
Read more

Aging sucks.....or does it?

Upon first thought, watching a parent age sucks. Unnoticeable at first. A bit of a stoop, some creaking in the knees, whitening of the hair. The doctor’s visits begin, as do the pills One for high blood pressure, another to thin the blood, and a handful of vitamins to top it off. The signs are there, but it is easier to see him as he has always been. My father, a pillar of strength. Until my pillar was knocked off-kilter. A simple surgery and the mortality of my father looked me square in the eye when the drugs took hold of his brain. Amidst his fidgeting and confusion, I realized…AGING SUCKS! And then….enlightenment dawned upon me….AGING IS BEAUTIFUL Wrinkles tell of smiles while silver hair speaks a life of memories. Knees creaky after years of kneeling in prayer, offering up a lap, and climbing up the stairs for one more kiss goodnight. Almost forty-eight years of memories nestled in my heart. Memories of my father. Taking us to church each Sunday Building and fixing ...
2 comments
Read more

WABDR, Section 2: Part 1

WE GET ON THE TRAIL, finally WABDR Section 2 It has taken forever to get to this part of the story, but we are finally here! The day we go off-road. But first, we go into Packwood in hopes of getting a first-aid kit that we realized we forgot the previous evening. No first-aid kit was to be found. Mostly because the one store that we figured would have one was closed. If you read the second installment of this story, you already know our response. (For those who didn’t read it, we dubbed this the F-it Trip.) We would figure it out as we went along. The way we handled it was to have a good breakfast and charge up our intercom system. As we rode down the road to get to the trail with our music playing, I felt as if we were straight out of Easy Rider... except much more badass. After all, we were going off-road. Pretty sure the big, wide, bug-catching grin on my face didn’t look so tough though.  White Pass went on for awhile. The clouds looked a bit ominous. I paid i...
1 comment
Read more