“We Have No Right to Happiness” by C. S. Lewis

It is natural for parents to become protective of their kids after all, it is their duty to see to it that their children are safe at all times. Children are not really that aware of how much danger exists outside, or even inside, their homes. Their lives revolve around school, family, and friends, and they rarely notice the real things that are happening around them. No one can blame these kids because they are at the stage where peer pressure and doing good in school matters most but this is the reason why parents closely monitor their children’s activities.

Every little thing from the environment to the food that kids are being feared by parents. The article also talks about how too protected these children have become and how it affects their childhood. While there is nothing wrong with being careful and taking care of your kids, I agree with the author that sometimes, parents need to let their children take chances.

Undoubtedly, there are numerous things that can be considered a threat to every child’s safety and health.

Criminals lurk in the shadows waiting for their next innocent victims, teenagers have that much angst that they go around on shooting sprees, and deadly diseases can be contracted anywhere. No parent would want to see their children suffer or go through such negative situations, which is why a lot of them are being too overly protective. These are not only the threats that parents worry about but they also think about the influence of media and technology in their children’s development, as well as the food and eating lifestyles that are suitable for their children.

However, being protective is entirely different from being too cautious to the point of depriving the children of simple things like chocolate chip cookies because the parent is afraid that the cookie contains too much fat and may be unhealthy for their kid. As the author stated, “you can’t go around afraid of everything. It’s too exhausting! No matter how careful you are, bad stuff happens. And it’s seldom the end of the world” (Spencer, 2007). Not only is being afraid of everything tiring but it also does not set a good example to the young people.

They would be led to believe that they should prioritize their fears instead of facing the world head on. They would not be able to experience their childhood because their parents are too afraid of letting them out of the house to ride a bike or to play with a friend. They would grow up missing out on the normal childhood activities and would become fearful of everything and everyone. Parents cannot protect their kids from everything. They should know the difference between wanting their child to be safe at all times and being overly protective.

They have to let their children live their own lives and see what happens because fearing the world takes too much effort and decreases the chances of making mistakes, hence, less lessons learned. Letting these kids be makes a difference in how they see and do things. They learn more when they have more freedom and not limited on the things that surrounds them. When kids do not experience life and the reality it can bring, they would not know how to improve themselves and grow as a person.