I have a quick story to tell you.


I was working on a bid this morning, and I had a question for my boss on it. While I was waiting for him to get off the phone I saw two women and a little boy, about two to three years old, walking in the neighborhood our office is located in.

As they were walking in front of the office the little boy fell down. Like most kids that age he looked to both of the women to see which would run to his aid. When they looked back and then kept moving the boy started crying.

The younger woman, I assume was his mom, turned back, and as it appeared to me told him to get up and keep walking. The little boy got up, still crying, and walked to her, still crying. Once he got up to her she took his hand, and they kept walking.

What's the big deal? Why would I tell you that story?

Well, because it was so good to see a mom that didn't run to the rescue, but basically told him to buck up and be a boy. She's raising him to be a man. Not to be a spoiled kid that has have mommy and daddy come running every time there is a problem.

I've written about this before. How I get so frustrated with kids growing up safe away from getting hurt.

When I was a kid if I came running in the house screaming and crying. If I wasn't bleeding every where then my mom would ask what the big deal was. I remember at four getting hurt and looking for blood or a bruise before crying. Because I knew my mom would tell me to get over it if I wasn't really hurt.

Because of that my brother and I grew up to be men. We're not some "metro sexuals", trying to get in touch with feminine our side, "Oh, I cracked a nail, and I can't find my facial scrub" little girls. We both love to work hard physically and mentally. We're not afraid of getting hurt. And we're not going to run to the emergency room every time we start bleeding everywhere because of a cut.

We grew up rough housing, fighting, tackling, climbing trees, jumping on trampolines without a net surrounding it for safety. We got stitches, casts, minor concussions, black eyes, skinned knees, and we were told to walk it off, grow up, be a man or at least a boy.

"Smear the Queer" was one our favorite games as kids, and we always played with guys much bigger and older than us. They didn't have enough sense to go easy on us either. Of course if we did really get hurt or started crying, which rarely happened. They would check us out and take a break to give us some time to recoup. As soon as we did, we'd want the ball. (Oh yeah, for all you politically correct idiots. "Smear the Queer" has nothing to do with gay bashing. If you don't know, look it up, and quit whining.)

All this to say. Boys should be raised to be MEN.

God bless,
Mr. Keith

"We're a generation of men raised by women." -- Tyler Durden -- Fight Club