PSA To Teen Parents :: We Can Do Better

Dear Parents, 

Before I share my PSA, here’s a little bit about me. I’m a mom of 2 girls, ages 14 & 16. Their dad and I have raised them to be kind, honest and responsible. We teach them to be the defender of those in need, as well as to help others. Of course – even good kids do irresponsible and immature things, so here is my plea to parents everywhere.

Please talk to your teenagers about party safety, especially if there is a pool at a the party. Being a parent of teens is no picnic; bring me a 3 year old tantrum any day!!! 

But seriously, it is not “COOL” to push anyone into a pool that is fully clothed. On the very minimum side, clothing, shoes, jewelry, purses and phones are damaged with this seemingly innocent action. These things can be replaced, although often costly. Then there is the embarrassment and humiliation. Well, depending on the kid this could be incredibly detrimental.  But what if that push causes a kid to hit their head on the side of the pool or steps? What if that kid swallows enough water and later goes to sleep and never wakes up? It may be an exaggeration, but these are serious consequences.  

In our case, over the weekend a young man pushed my daughter in the pool as she was trying to leave a party. He did this for no other reason than, “Hey! A girl! A pool! That’s funny!!”

Except … her shoes were wet, and her phone is now not working. She experienced embarrassment 100% because now her mom is pissed and wants to talk to the parents of the boy. I get the immaturity aspect of it; kids are impulsive and make bad decisions.

AND – I also know that she has a responsibility to herself. She (and her friends) needs to be aware of her surroundings and look out for her classmates.

Things to teach our kids going to parties:

  1. Bring your own cup 
  2. Never put said cup down 
  3. Stay with your group
  4. Don’t drink and drive – ever
  5. Don’t go near a pool or, at the very least, don’t push someone in

I hate that this happened to her, and of course I am so angry at what happened. But, at the same time, life lessons were learned last night. There were many (boys and girls that came to her and made sure she was okay. The mom of the party host did not, which is another story.

At the end of the day, so many of us as parents are doing the best we can. Teens will screw up – big screw ups and little ones. The young man in question did not apologize; in fact, he denied that it was him, although more than one person said that it was uncool and happened. An apology to my daughter would have made a small difference. But to have a total disregard for another? This is sad. We can do better. Let’s teach our teens that it’s okay to own the small mistakes. Maybe later in life they won’t make the big ones.

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