Two of my girlfriends have careers in child care. I always call it babysitting, but in New York state it's become a career choice. In order to work at it you must be certified, take 25 hours annually of inservices and can't accept more than a certain number of children. Only one of them is actually certified, the other only accepts 3 children at a time, so for her it's not necessary. I have to commend both of them, because I don't have that kind of patience. I did at one time, it was actually the first job I ever held. Now they say that most parents and even grandparents aren't qualified to take care of children.
At the age of 13 I was the neighborhood and beyond babysitter. There were 4 families of various size living a block or so away from me, and 3 families that required transportation to get to. I, as an adult, wonder why so many different people arranged their scheduled nights out around my availability. I was a kid for chrissakes. I was never without a sitters job on Friday or Saturday. On Sunday nights from late spring to early fall I sat for a family who went to the Dirt Track races. The Dad was the mechanic for one of the competitors. One job was Monday through Friday from 3:30p to 5p.
I didn't eat their food, I never had others in the house with me, I didn't spend my time talking on the phone or sitting in front of the TV. I played with the kids I was taking care of. I kept them from killing each other and themselves. I didn't allow running or racing around in the houses they lived in. I didn't let them touch anything they weren't allowed to touch. I watched them when they rode bikes, or played outside. Never once in any home did any of my charges suffer anything more than a bruised knee from playing tag or kickball. Toddlers got their hands slapped when they didn't mind and reached for things they could get hurt on, and older kids were treated to 15 minutes sitting in a chair. I suppose that was the 1960's equivalent of a time out. This was also the 1960's equivalent of childproofing ones home.
No home in the 1960's was ever childproofed. There were no locks on sink cabinet doors, no plastic caps for the light sockets. We had furniture with sharp edges and glass tops. Glass and ceramic knick-knacks were proudly displayed where children could reach them. Most survived the experience without mishap. We were taught that should we touch something, there would be consequences far worse than we could imagine.
We were educated by our parents and grandparents, and taught that some things were too hot for us to handle. No pot handle was ever placed in a manner that prevented a child from reaching it. We knew better than to try. Same with hot beverages on a table. We were taught that some things were not for young children, and the consequence of having too much curiosity could be painful for us. We might have to spend the day in our room, unable to play with our friends. None of our rooms had TV, computers or any other form of visual entertainment media. In other words, we were confined to our beds or a chair where all we might be allowed to do was reflect on our behavior. We might be allowed to read a book or do schoolwork, however the toys in the toybox were off limits for the duration of the punishment.
Oddly, I would expect that with all this childproofing going on, with all the rules and regulations for child care that exist today, children would be safer. I was surprised to find that not to be the case. Accidental injuries of children are occuring at the same rate as they always did. In some states the number of children seriously or fatally injured from bicycle accidents has actually increased. This despite the helmets that kids must wear until they're 14 in our state. I just had a thought. Maybe we should rely less on protective gear for our kids. Do less childproofing of our homes and start teaching them right from wrong. Don't be your kids best friend, be their parent. You just might save their life.
