It's Our Responsibility, As Parents....

Wow... The world sure is changing. We, as parents, have to open our eyes, and pay attention to this fact, and make sure we aren't being naive, or even worse, in denial.
The big story in the news... A 13 year old boy, arrested for selling cocaine, marijuana, and ground up pills, to students at his middle school! This had apparently been going on for quite some time, before he got caught. A local radio station had middle school students call in to the radio station yesterday, not give their names, or the school they went to, but tell us what they see going on in their middle schools. The info from these students was shocking. They spoke very matter of factly, all of them saying that yes, there are drug dealers, who are students at their school, yes, they knew who they were, yes, it was easy to get just about any kind of drug that you want, AT SCHOOL, and yes, a lot of their friends did drugs - at school! They were asked if they knew where the students get these drugs, they said "from larger drug dealers", but also said that a lot of people they know, got them from their parents, and some do drugs WITH their parents, and have friends over who participate with them! They said it is common to see someone at school doing drugs, and that the peer pressure is very high to participate. These were not answers from ONE student, who just goes to a bad school, this was call after call, of about 20 students, from different schools in the area, all saying basically the same things.
We HAVE to keep ourselves informed on what is going on these days, and what our children are being exposed to, at such an early age. If we are not aware, and informed, how can we educate our children? It is our responsibility, as parents, to know what our children are doing, what is going on at school and in their lives, and to educate them on how to handle these things, when faced with it. One of the other subjects I've heard addressed lately, is sex in school bathrooms, sexual acts on the school bus, and children having sex at age 11! We can't pretend that these things aren't going on. We have to have open conversations with our children, even if it's an uncomfortable subject. Once the lines of communication are open, they will feel more comfortable coming to you with things that they may have not felt comfortable discussing before. We are responsible for teaching, guiding, and molding our children. It's no one else's responsibility but ours. We can't let the things of the "world" mold them, we have to take whatever steps necessary to not just protect them from these things, but inform them. We can't keep them in a little bubble forever... They have to know what's out there, and what to do when faced with it. We have to inform them BEFORE they come in contact with these things, tell them how to handle these situations, and explain WHY they should be handled that way. Our children need to have a plan of attack, BEFORE they are faced with these things, so that when they are, they will know what to do. We need to stay in constant communication with our children, and be involved their lives. Don't assume, "that won't happen to my child". The "that won't happen to me" mentality, is pure denial!
We have a huge responsibility as parents, we have precious lives in our hands. Maybe if parents start stepping up, there will be less stories like this. And just a side note... Pray, pray, pray, for your children... Everyday! There is nothing like the prayers of a parent, for their child. XOXO!