Children and New Media

Yesterday we were back at the zoo with my mom who is visiting. Ben loves the "show" which is about a technie nerd who loves video games and computers and carries hand sanitizer in case he should get any "nature" on himself. Of course, the heroine loves the outdoors and volunteers at a national park. Ben clearly identifies with the former.

In fact, earlier in the week when I gave him an assignment to write his own fairy tale, I found him on the computer having googled "How to write a fairy tale." He loves Facebook (theoretically) and so far hasn't asked for his own account.

Which is good. Because the answer will be "no."

Forget all the security issues and the perverts out there in cyberspace seeking to lure my children into evil. That's bad enough. But when Kyri found my childhood diaries and journals in boxes I have yet to unpack and wanted me to read them to her, my first thought was: Probably need to burn those soon.

Because children are stupid sometimes. Adolescents misinterpret the world all the time. E.g. If he doesn't love me, I shall not be able to go on.

I have some little friends on Facebook. They don't think they are little and some of them are taller than me. But when I see their status updates, I thank God that Facebook didn't exist when I was 15. Or 24 for that matter. I am also thankful that blogs didn't enter my world until I was married and post 30. The "away" messages I used to put up on Instant Messenger when Mike and I were figuring out our relationship were bad enough, thank you. I tremble at what I would have blogged or said on Facebook during that time. Because I was absolutely certain most of the time that things wouldn't work out because I was quite used to my romantic interests not working out. But the idea of living without Mike made me a little crazy and thus my thoughts ranged from the happy state we were in when together to the deranged thinking of a long single female when we weren't.

So when I picture my children and what they would blog or say on Facebook entering the world of  "on the record" I feel it is my parental duty to keep them from letting their inner lives be exposed to anyone and everyone. I realize they can circumvent me and that they will face humiliation and I can't protect them from everything. But as a mom, I'm supposed to be a little wiser and know when to intervene for their own benefit. (Want to get me started on the respect I lost for Sarah Palin when she let her 17-year old be interviewed? No, probably not.)

I probably will let Kyri read some of my journals someday. If only, so she can get a tiny glimpse of how different your idea of life can be at 14 than the reality. But I'm so very glad I didn't blogs those thoughts.