IGNOR/ance: the Root of the Problem
I have always enjoyed examining root words. Sometimes this can be quite insightful. Take the word “ignorance” for example, with its root being ignor/e. This would seem to imply that ignorance is rooted in the act of being ignored, hence the outcome: ignorance. Makes sense to me! Okay, maybe that’s not the scholarly root, but it ought to be.
should be included in
many adult activities.”
So many times and in so many places, I’ve seen parents pushing off their children—ignoring them. Children are so eager to learn starting at a very young age with their “This?” and “That’s?” and the ever popular “Why’s?” It’s pathetic that they are so often ignored instead of answered when they voice their questions and opinions. Otherwise, how are they to learn?
I’ve always felt that children should be included in many adult activities. This is most likely due to my own upbringing in which I was included in the adults’ activities—being a part of their “big” conversations. Of course, I was also expected to act grown-up and to remember my manners. I go crazy when I witness parents telling their children, “Don’t bother me now. Why don’t you go play with the other kids?” What are they thinking? Not only does that kind of behavior lead the child to believe that he’s not wanted, it also stifles that wonderful questioning instinct with which Homo Sapiens are born. At this point, I immediately lose all respect for that adult and am actually quite disgusted with them.
The cure? There isn’t one. The majority of parents will go on ignoring their children and producing ignorance, and the few of us that actually do care will continue to nurture and respect our children, producing the future generation of elite individuals. I guess that’s just what separates the pack from the flock.
This essay is copyrighted © by Lydia Gage, 1995 c.e. and may not be reproduced without permission.
(reprinted from Satanic Parenting)
Lydia Gage
Priestess in the Church of Satan
