Happy Holidays
From our family to yours: Happy Holidays
If you haven't had a chance to check out the "Scared of Santa" photos, check them out here. (I hear the best were saved for the print edition today.)
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Comments (2)
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I find the photos of scared Santa experiences to be very distasteful. How can anyone find humor in the horror felt and expressed by children being forced to do something that frightens them so much? Would we find humor in photos of children being forced to be near animals that frightened them or being forced to do any other activity which frightens them?
We teach our children to not go to strangers and not be touched or held by strangers. Yet we force them once a year to be near someone that looks so completely different than anyone they know; usually this occurs at a developmental time when they are already uncertain of strangers or strange situations. Would these parents have forced their children to sit on the laps of costumed characters at Halloween if the children had expressed fear?
We need to be teaching our children to respect their feelings. Often when there is a fear and we allow the child freedom to honor that fear and gently introduce the situation they will overcome the fear and be able to move into the situation more comfortably. They will have learned to properly manage their feelings rather than being forced to deal with something with no understanding or support around them.
I find these photos and the situations they depict to be borderline abusive.
Being married to a professional Santa, I can state that these situations are very stressful to the Santa. A professional Santa wants each child's experience with him to be a comfortable happy experience. When forced to have a screaming, scared child sit with him to have a photo made, it creates a lot of stress for the Santa and sets a bad taste in the child's mouth for future visits. These are not the experiences that Santa wants children to remember.
You state that the best were saved for the print edition. Thank goodness I don't get the print edition--I just can imagine how horrified those children were.
Posted on December 25, 2006 9:48 AM
Parents must learn how to treat their children in various situations. Likewise, the children must learn at an early age that they must conform to the rules of society. Don't let your young children decide what you want to do or not to do. Parents are suppose to be role models.
Posted on December 26, 2006 9:41 AM