I came across this article by some fluke - which means it probably just popped into my RSS reader or something, and while I realised it was sad, it was also very true. It is an article about how men these days fear being around kids.
Not because kids are scary and hard to deal with, but because of the fear that if you spend time around kids you worry what people are thinking about you.
Now as people who read this blog would realise I have two kids of my own, and I love nothing more than spending time with them, it is the reason I get up in the mornings these days. But I, like a lot of fathers I know, can be very self conscious when doing parental duties, not around family and friends but around the general populace.
The one time I am always nervous is when I take Little Miss into the parents room to change her, or to a play ground to have some fun. It’s not her I am concerned being around, she is the one person who adores me unquestioningly, but it is the other parents, or general onlookers. My concern is when other little kids want to talk with you or join in a game, I become nervous about engaging them for fear their parents will look at me askew or wonder over my intentions.
It is sad, but it is true, and if you ask me it is one of the reasons we don’t have much community spirit any more. Half of us are so worried about our kids we can’t relax and the other half are so worried about how our actions will be viewed that we become distant and disengaged - what a world.

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