The parent in question has a son in my class. It is clearly evident that this family does not play. They have high expectations for their children, they set firm boundaries, there are consequences in their home. In other words, the kind of family I'd like to clone about 25 times each year.
The young man told me earlier this week that he asked his mom and dad if he could get his hair cut, mohawk-style. His father replied, "NO. That's not normal."
Don't get me wrong. I am all for individuality. I enjoy squirrely kids, kids bursting with personality. However, too often children get the impression that an unusual hair style gives them carte blanche for being the exception in other ways. And for some, that eventually leads to them being unable to conform in any way.
When I saw the mom later in the week, I recounted the conversation that took place in class, expressed my gratitude to dad, and mom said, "If he was in a band, that would be different."
I responded, "Yeah, like a band called The Mohawks."
She countered with, "Or The Village People..." *
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| photo by Charles Allen |
(* If you are so young that you are clueless about who The Village People were, I'm sorry for you. You missed out on a fun musical era...)
Some of us learned to fight our children like mad on hair style & color, so as to concede later. That way a piercing or tattoo is obviously way too much to ask for.
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