I Was A Kid Once Too.

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These days, disciplining kids can be hard. The threats of “I’ll tell your Mummy” that used to work during our time no longer hold any water with kids these days. Hell, they can even help you to tell their Mom themselves, showing that nothing you do or say will matter. They are so confident in their escapades and they know that whatever punishment their parents mete out to them, they’ll be able to endure it.

During our time, threatening to report us to our parents was always a red flag. While it didn’t always guarantee that we would stop whatever we were doing, we would at least make an effort to reduce it so that you don’t make good on your threat. That was how scared we were of punishments. For us, the punishments were basic, but nothing about them was basic.

It was the regular spanking, but the kind of spanking that will reset your brain. Just the thought of it will stop you from doing whatever it is you were thinking of. Another form of punishment was staying in painful positions for a selected period of time. It was always a hassle, but it taught the lesson. Back then, parents didn’t mind our tears because they knew that they were most likely crocodile tears.

So now, I have to ask, did the punishment they gave us back then really set us on the right path? Because when I think about it, most of the things I was spanked for, I still kept doing them until I decided on my own to stop. Stealing meat from the pot, staying late after school, staying late at a friend’s house, or playing so much that all my clothes got dirty. No matter what it was, no matter how hard the punishment was, it was never bad enough to stop me from doing the same thing the next time I got the chance.

I was never really a problem child, I gave my Mom just the average amount of headaches that any child would give their mother and the more I think about it, the more I realize that I never really stopped the things I was flogged for. I simply grew up. I became too old to be stealing meat from the pot of soup, I graduated from secondary school so I was no longer late to come home. I still returned home from church late, I still visited friends and stayed out late, but I no longer dirtied myself to the point where I’d be a walking embarrassment. Soon, as my friends and I started getting admitted into universities and whatnot, I stopped having friends to visit. Until I too went off to my school.

So, when I think about it, the punishments didn’t really change me. They kept me in line, I know. They forced me to be smart about the rules I’d break because I’d find the best way to do them without incurring my mother’s wrath. When I come home late, I’d have to think of the lies I’ll tell so I don’t get punished, I’ll also have to figure out an explanation when there are only six pieces of meat in the pot when there should be twelve.

I guess after a while, I just stopped caring about these things. I simply stopped. I guess that comes with being an adult. You outgrow certain things and parental discipline is one of them. Because if by the time you’re an adult, you’re still stealing meat from the pot or staying out late without reason… then you’re basically a big baby. But that’s my opinion.

Why am I saying this? I’m just inspired by how kids these days have no fear for their parents. They do what they want and don’t fear repercussions. During our time, we did what we wanted in spite of the repercussions. But I still feel like it won’t still make a difference. If you spank a kid today, they may cry, they may refrain from that thing for a day or two… but they will eventually return to it. You can’t stop it. I guess it’ll require a major mental rewiring.

But then, what do I know? I’m just another one of those kids.

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_{Thank you for reading. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below, I would love to know what you’re thinking. Till we meet in the next post.}

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_{N.B: All images used in this post are mine. The thumbnail was designed using Canva.}

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