My daughter was not very happy to see me this morning, a statement that is actually true for every other morning this past week as well. Previously her annoyance came from my insistence that she wake up and get out of bed, the season’s longer days leading to too many nights in a row of missed bedtimes, groggy mornings, and hectic school runs.
Her aggravation today, however, was entirely the opposite. After sleeping in much later than is typical she sat on the couch glaring, tablet perched on one knee, toast with entirely too much butter on the other, and declared that I shouldn’t be downstairs yet. She hadn’t had her proper amount of “alone time.”
As is the case most days, it wasn’t the last time a member of our household expressed displeasure with me. A few hours later I was taking a much-deserved break from the laborious yard work I had been suffering through when my wife came outside and casually asked where Alaina was. To my chagrin, I had absolutely no idea, an admission that in retrospect was a mistake. She was quickly found in one of her favorite “forts”, hideouts chosen precisely because of the difficulty a responsible supervising parent would have in seeing her.
In 2018 Utah passed what they called the “Free-Range Kids Law”, becoming the first state in the country to decriminalize children playing outside without adult supervision. You read that correctly, Utah is the only state that legally specifies that a child alone is not in and of itself considered neglect. According to Governor Herbert, “we believe that parents know and love their kids better than anybody. Absent evidence of clear danger, abuse, or neglect, we believe that parents have the best sense of how to teach responsibility to their children.”
I’m going to assume that giving a four-year-old twenty bucks to run down to the corner store to pick up smokes is still frowned upon and I hope Utah doesn’t become plagued by roving bands of feral children, but appreciate the acknowledgment that sometimes, just sometimes, it’s OK to admit that not every child is the same and that good-intentioned over legislation can sometimes be counterproductive.
My daughter doesn’t get half of the freedom that she wishes she had. I won’t leave her home alone, let her walk to her friend’s house around the corner or do my grocery shopping while she’s at the park.
I don’t, but someday I will, potentially at an earlier age than some of her friends are allowed to and almost certainly at a younger age than others might find appropriate. She’s always been a resourceful and self-reliant young girl and I’m inclined to encourage that as much as I think her level of responsibility dictates.
I’m also really enjoying being able to sleep in a bit on weekends.
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Previously Published on thirstydaddy.com and is republished on Medium.
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