Stop teaching your kids not to stare

Take 2 minutes and watch this video.


Did your parents teach you not to "stare" at people who were different? Mine did. And I believe they had the best intentions in doing so. But, what were they teaching us....... really?

Children are naturally curious, and rightly so. If we teach our kids that it is rude to look at someone who is different from them, aren't we sending them a terrible message? In the name of being politically correct or "polite" (we do a lot of that here in the South), aren't we are telling them:

"Don't look at that child because she is in a wheelchair and she doesn't want to be looked at."

{she wants so badly to be seen}

"Don't ask questions about why that little boy has brown skin and the rest of his family has white skin. That would be rude."

{his mom would likely love for you to ask because it gives her 

a chance to explain how God makes families}

"If you see a child who acts differently than you, just pretend you don't see them and go play with your "normal" friends"

{he just wants you to accept him.... even if he is different}

 "When people don't look like you....you should just ignore them."

{isn't this the last thing we want to teach our kids?} 

Obviously I am not suggesting that we allow our kids to literally stare down someone who is different. But more often than not, the behavior we feel the need to correct is truly innocent curiosity.

Preserve the innocence of your children's eyes when they are young. Most adults I know could learn a lot by seeing the world through the eyes of a child.

Talk to your kids. Show them by example. Speak to people. Be kind. Use these opportunities to teach them something valuable. Help them understand.

But please, don't encourage them not to see.

Because everyone deserves to be seen!

Thanks for letting me share,