Today my eldest asked me a question that didn't even make me pause to think, but his shocked response to my reply made me think about how this world is influencing our children. His question was fairly innocent;
"Mum, if our house was on fire and the pets, Dad, my brother and I were outside, what would you go back in for?"
"Absolutely nothing." I answered without pause. He looked at me and said;
"No, seriously, what precious thing would you go back in to save?" I looked at his confused expression and replied
"Nothing, because the most precious things to me are already outside, everything else I can replace." He still looked disbelievingly at me and said
"What about photographs?"
"Well, I would be upset to lose some, but it's not worth risking my life for!" He sighed
"I would go back for my laptop." he countered
"You most certainly would not!" It
took me a long time but I eventually managed to persuade him that his
life and the life of his brother are of more worth than any one thing I
might own in the house.
This conversation made me think. Does my son really not understand that life has more value than possessions? Where have I gone wrong? Is this just a conversation that every parent will encounter when a child comes to a certain age?
