The World We Live In = The World We Make

I just read this on the internets...

Based on surveys collected, the top five worries of parents are, in order:

1. Kidnapping
2. School violence
3. Terrorists
4. Dangerous strangers
5. Drugs

But how do children really get hurt or killed?

1. Car accidents
2. Homicide (usually committed by a person who knows the child, not a stranger)
3. Abuse
4. Suicide
5. Drowning

So it would seem to me that the more time we spend teaching our kids to swim, and ensuring their proper mental health, as opposed to warding them off of strangers, the better off we are. Sure, have the stranger talk, and yes, pound it home, but a good couple of hours spent learning how to doggy paddle and tread water might be more useful.

I also decided today that Zoey will learn how to play with dangerous things, safely...sticks, rocks, scissors, fire, you know, all the good stuff. No, I'm not getting started this very second. She's two! I am going to start fostering a larger sense of adventure though, and trust in her own abilities and knowledge...discretion, judgement, you know, all those things that the kids I too often deal with have been robbed of.

I think someone is needing swim lessons, a tool set, and some campfire time. We can manage that.