>>Odd ideas can lodge in young girls' minds<< yes, those ideas you describe are certainly real & influence boys as much as girls due to so many factors...also, imo, those feelings often are seeded at a very young age- early child development is so formative...it sure would be wonderful if we could keep our youth away from all those who would make them feel inferior however to do that you'd have to be living on the moon or maybe at the bottom of the grand canyon (i remember reading about a family who did that & at the time it seemed appealing to me!)... just a few things which adversely influence a kid's self esteem includes the media (all kinds), some teachers, their peers, even some parents...all of this can be part of the mix that make young girls & boys feel inadequate...
sadly, even the most loving parent can be clueless about what their children are being exposed to until it is too late...for example, a friend whose 2 grown sons are now suing the local boys choir (franciscans) for molestation...all the mom knew at the time was that her 2 boys were so fortunate to be part of the children's choir that travelled to europe to perform...what mom would not think this was a wonderful opportunity....DECADES later the boys/now men finally were willing to come to terms with what happened to them on that trip... btw, my first encounter with the catholic religion was as a young girl with a friend who was raised catholic...her stories of god & hell & pergatory, etc scared the beegeesuz out of me...i went home & prayed for everyone stuck in pergatory to be let out immediately! lol... >>At the time of Kilauren's birth, Catholic services may have been the only or at least the most extensive "social services" available.<< however, i will speak up on behalf of the generosity of catholic services that i encountered when i was a young divorced single mom barley keeping a roof over our heads & food in our stomachs...our local catholic services had a wonderful 'store' set up for people in need during the holiday season where they let you come in & pick out presents for your child...lots of people donated toys & food & there was a group of women who made gorgeous hand made sweaters!!!! i will never ever forget that brand new made with such love sweater that i picked out for my (then) little boy...it brings me to tears thinking about it...anyway this service has grown into a multiagency service & the store is now huge & it all started because of the generosity & i must add creative thinking of catholic services ******************************************** Kate Bennett: www.katebennett.com Sponsored by Polysonics/Atlantis Sound Labs Over the Moon- "bringing the melancholy world of twilight to life almost like magic" All Music Guide ********************************************
