In his March 30 column, “Modern parenting might be too much of a good thing,” Greg Jayne wrote about how he believes that parents are too concerned about creating a perfect environment for children, as opposed to back in the day when kids were able to be “adventurous” and more free to do what they want because parents were too busy with work.
His column does a great job of getting its message across to the readers, using a very logical approach. However, the quote from a friend that Jayne used to describe parenting bothers me a little bit: “If your kid hasn’t had stitches or been to the ER by the time they’re 7, then you’re doing something wrong.” I feel that this takes Jayne’s message slightly too far in stating that kids must physically injure themselves to learn from their mistakes. There are far less risky ways for children to learn right from wrong than having them visit a doctor after physically hurting themselves. I agree that parenting is a little over the top nowadays, with organized sports, activities and even play dates, however, there must be a clear line drawn on how much parents should “interfere” with their kids’ experience as a child.
Cody Hensler
Battle Ground
