Some parents simply toss this responsibility to the wind, and leave the future of a child to chance. I have seen and eard many stories of many children being abandoned, abused, and apprehended. Can children really be blamed for criminal actions? Is everything that they do really a reflection of who they are, or is it all nothing more than a voice crying out in desperation to be heard by someone? Sometimes actions are the only way people know how to communicate with each other.
Many of the youth today, not only have to face the challenges of school, and work, but must also have to face the trials of their own home. A few years ago, I had a friend who had been one of the smartest, strongest, and most inspirational people I had ever known. She was someone that I had always looked up to. She was always kind, always loving, always willing to do what was right and a great friend to everyone she met, but somehow she never seemed happy. One day she came to school looking hurt and miserable and wouldn''t respond to anyone.
I asked her what was wrong and pleaded with her to be completely honest. She made me promise not to tell anyone about anything she was about to tell me. I made her that promise, and she rolled up her sleeve. Her arm was had been abused by her parents the night before, but what shocked me even more as the fact that she told me this had been happening for 2 years and no one had ever known. I had been the first person she told, and the last. As her best friend I kept my promise and never told anyone, thinking that I was doing the right thing.
A month later, she died. She had taken her own life. Her parents were caught, arrested, lost everything they had, and everyone finally knew the truth, but it was too late. Years later that memory still haunts me and still I regret never saying anything. I wish I could go back, wish I could change the past, because though promises are meant to e kept, some must be broken! My friend, who I will not name, paid the ultimate price at the hands of her own parents, and for what? She never did anything wrong!
Abusive parents not only endanger the lives of their own children, but of everyone around them as well! What is it that drives a parent or guardian to be such a monster? There are many reasons, but one of the most common reasons is alcohol. Alcohol affects the brain it warps your mind, and deters your Judgment. It brings out the worst in you, and makes you do things that you would never normally do. It can eighten your anxiety levels making you more prone to being easily angered, annoyed, or abusive!
It is a very dangerous thing, and because of it, many lives have been lost and taken. It is highly addictive, which makes it''s appeal to people even stronger. Many find it extremely hard if not impossible to quit. Because of this, many kids even fear going home. Staying at a friend''s house, finding excuses to be late, doing everything in their power to avoid being near their own parents are all desperate attempts of children trying to escape the harsh reality of them being eaten, sexually abused, or worse.
Many will grow up angry and bitter, with both psychological and physical damage. Most will follow their parent''s example and become alcoholics themselves, thus starting the cycle over again. How many more of these children have to suffer? How many more have to die? How many more have to go through hell and back, before somebody realizes all this must stop?! A child''s parent is their whole world, their light in the dark, their shelter from the storm. The time span of childhood to adulthood is the most important time of all.
It is at this ime when every child learns what''s right and what''s wrong, what''s up and what''s down, who they are and who they want to be. This is the time of their life where they need the most support. Parents are not only caregivers, they are living examples, and if a parent is doing nothing but beating their child, pushing them around, or yelling at them constantly, they are doing nothing but destroying their child, and creating a monster! What you reap is what you sow, and one day when that child grows up the only thing that parent will see in him is a reflection of himself as a parent.
This doesn''t have to happen, in fact this was never how the world was suppose to be, and though we cannot end parental abuse we can prevent and limit it! It is my hope that one day we will all wake up from this nightmare. That every home will be filled with love, that every child will grow up happy, healthy, live long prosperous lives, and that no one ever has to go through the pain of losing a loved one to abuse ever again! "For I know the plans I have for you, so says the Lord, Plans to help you not to harm you, to give you hope and a future. " -Jeremiah 29:11
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