This Is Not What I Expected To Blog About

Wow - I wasn't expecting to take a break from blogging but it seems that I did.  And, while I have certainly missed my friends who 'live inside my computer' - I have felt some relief at not feeling the pressure of trying to think of things to post about.  The break has done me the world of good.

I hope that everyone had a great Christmas and New Year - both were very quiet for us (which suited us old fogies down to the ground) and, although it was quiet, we were certainly busy getting our home ready to put on the market.  It is now on the market and things are progressing very well.

Now, those of you who have been following my blog for a while will know that I am not the most maternal person going - OK, I'm not maternal by any stretch of the imagination BUT I do still know right from wrong when it comes to children.  I may not be able to inter-act with them very well but these two stories, in the past 24 hours, have left me scratching my head with my mouth hanging open.

News story last night - two children, aged 4 and 10, were left about 300m from the flags on the beach while their parents went shopping.  Firstly, which parents would leave two children that age unsupervised anywhere - never mind on the beach ?  And secondly, which parents would leave two children that age unsupervised anywhere - never mind on the beach ?  The little girl went into the ocean and got caught in a rip.  Thankfully a board rider heard / saw her and rescued her.  That could so easily have ended very very badly for that family.  Can you imagine how her older brother would have felt as he would (I assume) have been told to 'look after your little sister' ?  Given how un-maternal I am - I still would not have done that to my child.

News story today - 19 children had to be rescued from locked cars in Victoria.  Yesterday the temps in Victoria were horrible.  At 6pm last night the temp was still 43°.  By 9pm it had dropped to 38°.  Again, which parents think it's OK to leave their child locked in a car ?  Never mind about the heat - who locks their child in a car ?  Again, given how un-maternal I am - I know that it isn't right to lock my child in a car.

So it begs the question - are they not maternal or are they just plain dumb-arses ?  I'd like to think that people who have children have a protective instinct - somewhere, that they would protect them at any cost and if this is the case, what were these parents thinking ?  Or where they just not thinking ?  But that begs the question - how can you have children and not think about what you are doing with them ?  Where you are leaving them ?  How safe will they be ?  While I don't want to believe that every second person walking around is a pedophile,  you would have to think that two children alone on a beach, 300m from where most people are sitting / playing / swimming, would be easy prey for anyone so inclined.

I am just shocked that parents can treat their children like this.  It has just blown my mind.

Am I being unreasonable ?

Would you leave your child

 under 10 unsupervised ?

TFTD : It's not always where you are in life, but who you have by your side that matters.