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AND LEAVE THEM THERE?
"Redt nit keyn narishkayt!"*
*Don't talk nonsense
Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe
Syosset, New York
Jerry Seinfeld ("SeinLanguage") wrote, "You can divide your whole life into two basic categories. You're either staying in or going out. Everything else is irrelevant detail.
The urge to go out and then return is very strong...When you're out, everything's a little out of control and exciting. Something could happen. You might see something. You might find something, You might even be part of something."
Writer, Lenore Skenazy, has declared Saturday, May 22, as "Take Our Children to the Park...And Leave Them There Day." Is she "meshugge"--a crazy, nutty person?
Skenazy, formerly a writer for the Daily News, said that two years ago, she put one of her sons, then 9, on the subway ("sobvey") and told him to head home alone from Bloomingdale's. What was the goal? "Vos tut zikh"? (What's going on?) She wants to teach her sons independence and social skills--within limits. She wants to get kids outside to meet each other and relearn the lost art of playing. As opposed to PlayStationing."
Hasn't Ms. Skenazy read about the kidnapping of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh? She needs to remember ("gedenken") Etan Patz, the most famouos missing child of New York City. (His disappearance helped spark the missing children's movement, including new legislation, new "visikayt" (awareness), and various methods for tracking down missing children, such as the milk carton campaigns of the mid 80s.)
"In di alte gute tsaytn" (In the good old days)
As I reminisce about my childhood, one thing is true: The world is a lot scarier place than it was when we were kids. I grew up in Arverne, Rockaway Beach, New York. My friends and I used to play-- unsupervised--in the park on Beach 68th Street. We played outside all the time. There was no TV, video games, "kompyuters," "tselularer telefon," Purell or the carrying of bottled "vaser." We played Potsey, Dodge ball, Hide and seek, Kick the can, and Ringolevio. Our roller skates had 4 metal wheels and needed a skate key. On Sundays, my father took me ice skating at the Brooklyn Ice Palace.
In announcing her "forshlog" (proposal), Ms. Skenazy said, "I know there will be shrill voices insisting 'Predators are gonna love this holiday!' but keep a level head. Crime is down. Awareness is up. There is safety in numbers, which means getting kits outside again, together."
Are there any guidelines for the correct age of a child who can be left at home alone, or permitted to go to the local park alone?
Lynn Yaney, spokeswoman for the agency that handles child welfare in Contra Costa County, CA, states:
"A general rule of thumb is that kids under age seven aren't capable of thinking logically and putting cause and effect together. Tanner said, "They are reliant on caregivers to structure their day." Children between ages 7 and 10 years aren't generally ready to self-supervise for an extended period, but in a routine and predictable environment, such as just after school, they can manage. Tanner said, "Children 12 and 13 years old should be judged on a case by case basis, but should not be left alone overnight."
Leonore Skenazy says that "if you were playing outside in the '70s or '80s, your kids today are safer than you were!...it doesn't feel that way. In fact, here's an interesting poll about how the majority of people feel crime is going up when actually it's going down."
The Yiddish word for safe/unharmed is "besholem." As parents/grandparents, we MUST protect our children/grandchildren. They must be made aware of all potentially hazardous areas: remote areas, vacant lots, parking lots, garages, public school playgrounds, deserted buildings, shopping centers, stairwells, laundromats, AND PUBLIC PARKS! Those youngsters who are old enough to drive, must be taught that should their car be disabled in a shopping area parking lot, it is best not to accept help from a "fremder" (stranger). Call a service station!
"Vos iz der untershte shure?" (What's the bottom line?) Ms. Skenazy, "Ikh hob tsu dir a tayne." (I have a complaint to bring to you.) I'm still for parental spying....or supervision. As Joanna Molloy wrote, "Seven? At that age, kids still think they can fly off the fire escape if they have their cape on!"
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Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe is the author of
two books:
"Yiddish for Dog & Cat Lovers" and
"Are Yentas, Kibitzers, & Tummlers Weapons of Mass Instruction? Yiddish
Trivia." To order a copy, go to her
website: MarjorieGottliebWolfe.com
NU, what are you waiting for? Order the book!
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