Last night I attempted to make a big stride in my parenting career. I was going to allow Lane to play out in front of our house WITHOUT me present. I was going to allow him some freedom to play independently without the ever watching eye of mom. It surprised me though that he quickly responded with, "No Mom. If I were out there by myself, someone would take me." Though I felt good about the idea that he was conscious of things like these, I was saddened that my 6-year-old has to worry about the threat of others. When I was a kid, our only rule seemed to be that when the street lights came on, our day of playing concluded. We also had to be within a short enough distance to hear mom or dad call us in for dinner. It seems like times like those are gone forever. As a kid, the fear of strangers never crossed my mind. Today, kids have to be weary of so much more. Parks, shopping malls, grocery stores, schools...these are all places where predators can hide. I am glad Lane knows the importance of being aware of his surroundings and who he is with, but I still feel that he is cheated out of parts of his childhood.
Though I know the time will come when Lane finally does break away from the nest a bit. I can't help but be totally ok with the idea that he still likes to stay under his mama's wing.
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