Salutations, traveler of The Internets! Welcome to William's Bloody Hell, so named after our founder, Sir Bloody William.
He is seen in the likeness above in a rare, 19th century woodcut. This
image was rumoured to have been
commissioned after a bout of unpleasantness
in the White Chapel district of London. Do enjoy your stay and peruse our many, varied offerings, much of which cannot be found elsewhere!
:: Today's soundtrack: The Cruxshadows "It's a Sin" ::
With the New Year once again looming, in reinvigorates my sense of introspectiveness and self-judgementalism (ooh! I just made up a word!).
I have two friends who are expecting babies soon and this makes me wonder if I could be any good at that there parenting stuff. I take a look at my life and how I got here and I wonder if any of it would garner good parenting skills or at the very least one or two tales to make for examples of What Not to Do. Not something for me look on as not-doing as far as parenting goes, rather something to relay to a child as a cautionary tale.
And that's one thing right there: when raising a child, how much of it is the telling of a cautionary tale so they won't get hurt and how much of it is letting them find out what happens when they jam a spoon in the outlet on their own? Just where do you draw they line? Does one learn better if allowed to put their hand on a hot burner than someone simply telling you not to do it?
And then there's the whole honesty thing. I'd like to think I'd be as up front and direct as possible with a child, but that begs the questions: what about Santa Claus? The Tooth Fairy? WHERE DO BABIES COME FROM? There are days when I'd like to think I wouldn't perpetuate the myth of Santa on my kid, but then I recall my own childhood and wonder if the kid would be missing out? Not just because of the presents, but also when interacting with other children who believe in Santa at their house. Would that be weird? Would it turn my child into a freak to the other kids?? But, would it be worse than looking the child straight in the eye and flat out lying? I don't know if I could do that.
And speaking of "where do babies come from," how does one handle the issues of puberty and sex with their kid? I'd hate to be one of those parents who chastises his daughters but high-fives his sons because that just seems wrong to have that double standard like that, and to push the whole Abstinence Only policy would not only be hypocritical but also unrealistic. I think I'm at the point where any questions that come up wouldn't make me blush, but how can I make my kid comfortable enough to talk about sexual stuff with me? What kid wants to talk to their parents about that? Is it even humanly possible?
I'm sure some of you are saying to yourselves hey, I thought this William the Bloody guy didn't even LIKE kids! Well, that statement is true and false at the same time. I like children well enough, it's just that for every one small child I see quietly reading and enjoying a good Dr. Seuss book, there seem to be five others who prefer to run around screaming and breaking shit. I'd LIKE to think that the child I'd raise would be the smart, well-behaved type, but who's to know until it's too late?
William (who's your daddy?)
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