A Safe Home

This topic may be a bit taboo is some circles...well, those cirlces need to get over it. Domestic abuse happens all too often and it does not discriminate. It affects rich & poor, any race. Women like you, like me, like our friends.

A great resource for information and help is SafeHome. Their web site is full of helpful information..some a bit shocking. According to the site, of high school graduates, 1 in 4 has been in an abusive relationship. As a parent, this is alarming. Especially a parent of a boy. In this world of gender equality I wonder if parents still teach their boys that it's not right to hit a girl, to open the door for a lady and use your best manners in the company of a girl/woman or adult. We do, and I'll admit, I feel a little old-fashioned. But how else can you teach the respect at such an early age? It is fun to see the look on people's faces when my 3 & 6 year old are fighting to be the "polite one" holding the door. :)

The site gives a wonderful Dating Bill of Rights that I hope you will share with your children when they are at the appropriate age. Their first "right" is a great quote: I HAVE THE RIGHT TO TRUST MYSELF ABOVE ALL OTHERS --Claudette McShane - 1988.

If you or someone you know suffers from abuse, please call your local shelter, or our friends at SafeHome, to help you get to safety. Have a safe and wonderful holiday everyone! See you next week after my vacation!