I love reading.
I used to devour books when I was younger.
I stopped for a little while in college and my twenties to get drunk and party.
I'm resuming my habit...thank God!
Not the getting drunk and partying habit...the reading habit!
Husband bought me a Kindle for my 35th birthday and it has been a Godsend for my reading habit. I use it almost every single day and it's awesome. I have read so many more books since I received this gift that I can't even imagine turning pages like some sucker anymore!
I am currently reading, Not My Daughter by Barbara Delinsky. It's basically a high school principal (single Mom) whose daughter and friends enter into a pregnancy pact. I won't go into details about the plot or anything like that. I will go into things that this book is making me feel and think about though...after all, isn't that what books are supposed to do?
- I rarely thought about getting pregnant as a sexually active teenager. It just never entered my mind. However, in this book, the girls seek it out. I just couldn't imagine.
- Since we had the twins, I have often thought about teenage Moms. I have thought about them more than I ever have...how do they do it? Do they lose all their friends? How do their parents view them? How do their teachers treat them? Are some people downright mean to them? What if they can get an abortion without anyone knowing? Does their life change at all? Or stay the same? If they choose to keep the baby and give it up for adoption, how does that work? Do they still love the baby? Are they dubbed "the pregnant girl" for the rest of high school?
- A lot of the book is also based on people in the community blaming the mothers of these girls for not seeing what was going on...saying that they should have known. I don't know about this. As a teacher of middle school kids and a tutor of high school kids, I can tell you firsthand, most parents don't know what is going on with their kids. I think as a parent of a high school student, you walk a fine line between knowing all the details and giving your child respect and privacy so that they can grow up without you hovering.
- I am going to mix the two side of the line. I am going to allow my kids to grow up with a slightly hovering Mom, but I will still snoop. I think most good parents do. Maybe I'm wrong about this. Maybe it's too early for me to even consider what kind of parent I'll be to my high school aged kids, but I do think about it...a lot.
- Since the main character is the high school principal, the townspeople are saying she should step down. She loves her job and is good at it. What would I do? Would I leave my position to concentrate on my family (while also making the town happy)? Or would I stay at my position, face the firing squad, and defend my daughter (even if I don't agree with what she did)? I think you have loyalties which lay thick in either direction. First, you're against teenage pregnancy and really need to advocate that position for the majority of teenagers in the town. Second, you're a mother who needs to support your daughter through her own teenage pregnancy. What gives?
