role model

My Thoughts on the Obamas

Happy 100th post to ME!!!  This has been such a blessing, a lot of work, and a lot of fun working on and creating this blog.  I have grown so much since May when I did my first post.  When I wrote that post, I had NO clue what I would write about.  But I knew I liked to talk, so I didn’t think it would be that hard!   In any event, I wanted to make sure that my 100th post was significant, so I decided to share my thoughts on one of the most influential families in the world, The Obamas.

I have been a Barack Obama supporter since he declared his candidacy.  Not only was I a supporter of the candidate, but I was a supporter of his family.  It’s been awhile since a positive image of an African-American family has been seen in mainstream media.  People’s first look was “The Cosby Show”…and that was fictional; I’m glad that the Obamas are very real and have not changed anything since President Obama was elected.  Lucky for me, I am a part of and grew up seeing great black families, so this was not a foreign concept to me.  

I appreciate how involved our First Lady is on causes that she holds dear.  The last time I saw a FLOTUS this active was Nancy Reagan…and I was a toddler.  I’m sure Secretary of State Clinton and both Mrs. Bushes were active…I just don’t remember.  (Or maybe I didn’t pay attention.)  I love the attention that she has given to military families and to childhood obesity.  She has become such an icon and role model, and it’s been a while since the world has seen a person like her-one who is able to inspire greatness in so many people.

I also appreciate how Sasha and Malia are being kept under wraps.  I feel like when President Clinton and (the 2nd) President Bush were in the White House, you always heard something about their kids.  Now, maybe I’m living under a rock, but I haven’t heard too much about Sasha and Malia in the news.  They go to school and do what kids do, which I think is great!  Now, I have to admit that my friends and I were once joking around and said that it would be SO hard for a boy to date either one of them (when they get older).  They have to deal with Secret Service, Barack and Michelle, and don’t forget Grandma Marian!

To say I love the Obamas is an understatement.  I appreciate the positive changes that have taken place in this country since President Obamas inauguration and how he and Michelle work as a team.  I appreciate how Sasha and Malia are nowhere to be seen each week in some magazine or newspaper.  And I definitely appreciate how the Obamas are able to keep some family traditions in place after the move to DC from Chicago. 

So what do you guys think?  Are the Obamas a good family role model for Americans?  Until next time, I’m just a Southern girl…in the city.

P.S.  I purposefully stayed away from ANY election or political stuff.  I’m saving that for my next post! 😉

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Are We Disservicing Our Boys?

I had the opportunity to hang out with a friend, we’ll call him Tim, this weekend that I haven’t seen in awhile.  As we were catching each other up on our lives and having a great time, Tim gave me a suggestion for my blog.  As a teacher, he has an opportunity to come into contact with students and parents of all backgrounds. He suggested that I write about single moms and how they do a disservice to their children, particularly their sons.  I kindly pointed out that it’s not just a problem with single moms-it’s ALL moms who make excuses for their sons.

I have heard of numerous stories where moms, single and married, make allowances and excuses for their sons’ bad deeds, whether it’s condoning disrespectful behavior, making bad grades in school, being lazy, and even having children and not taking care of them.  If their daughters were to behave the same way, these mothers would get in their tails so quickly the girls wouldn’t have a chance to see them coming.  These boys grow up to become men who expect women to take care of them, will sit around the house all day, and will essentially not be good to anyone.  I have heard of so many stories were mothers allow their sons to behave any type of way, even at 5 years old, and not discipline them or tell them that they are wrong.  And God forbid someone else try to step in and teach the boy right from wrong, even his own father.  A mother will attack and quickly say, “You will not talk to my child that way.” 

Mothers are protective anyway over their children, and I truly believe that boys hold special places in the hearts of their mothers.   In some African cultures, it is customary when a boy reaches puberty for his father to take him away from the home and teach him how to be a man, without the interference of his mother.  I think a little bit of this should be adopted into American culture.  If there is no father in the home or the boy’s life, he should have a strong male figure that is easily accessible, that he can look up to, and discuss things with that he can’t talk about with his mother.

Now, I don’t have children, but I do plan to one day.  And it is my hope and prayer that if I do have a son that his father can teach him the ways of being a man, because that’s something I know nothing about.  So what say you, good people?  Are we disservicing our boys by allowing them to behave any way they wish?  By having children and not taking care of them?  By not respecting authority?  Or are we making a mountain of a molehill? Is the problem deeper than mothers relationships with their sons?   Most importantly is it true that, “We raise our daughters but love our sons”?  Until next time, I’m just a Southern girl…in the city.

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