Wednesday, September 19, 2007

An Interesting Read

I just finished a very good book by Jodi Picoult titled "Nineteen Minutes."

It is about a school shooting at a high school where lives are changed forever. The premise of the novel deals with how bullying can affect a person's life.

It is one of those books that you just don't forget. It has made me ponder the problem of bullying and fitting-in that goes on every day. As a parent, I know Laura, like all adolescents, will struggle with finding acceptance among peer groups as she grows older.

As a teacher, I saw bullying first-hand in the public high school setting.

And I remember those days as a teenager, when I followed the clothes fads, hairstyles, and just want to be liked by my peers. Now I look at the clothes young girls wear, and I really dread the days of junior high when Laura might want to show her belly and wear strapless shirts!

How as parents can we help?

4 comments:

Jenn said...

Prayer, prayer and more prayer for God to watch over our children and all the children of their schools. Also, hope that turtlenecks, long jeans and boots are in style. :)

Alissa said...

A friend of ours at church with a grown daughter recently offered this advice -- start training them early. When her daughter was 4 they started going clothes shopping together and they always followed the bend-over/sit down test. If the clothes "passed" this modesty test they could buy it. My friend stated that by establishing this rule so early with her daughter, when she got into jr/high school there wasn't even a question about what was appropriate to wear.

Jeanne said...

After I read The Pact by Jodi I swore off her books. Tooo emotional.

As for style advice, I say go for the "lose the battle, win the war" tactic. You should always have the final say in what she wears, but dressing ones self is a creative expression of your personality.

Good luck, even I'm scared by some of the clothes sold for the young girls these days!

Ginger said...

Hey Sara- just found your blog. Just wanted to say that I am glad I have boys, but scared about the choices they will face. I will be wearing out God's ear with all my prayers.