 was cornered in the doctor's office by a woman who said her 'sweet' child suddenly turned into a 'monster' at age 16 and mine will, too. I seem to have this conversation a lot with people from outside my culture, especially when they see me with my 'well-behaved' daughter. Something about her behavior sets their teeth on edge, so I will address it.
To the woman in the doctor's office who claims her kid pulled a Jekyll & Hyde at age 16, I call bullshit. Madam, assuming there are no mental defects or other extenuating circumstances, I don't believe your child suddenly turned on you. Maybe your child was 'sweet' of his own accord when he was young, but I ask you, did you require that he be 'sweet?' Had you set any behavioral expectations, or were you just relying on his natural tendencies? Since you're cornering strangers like me in the doctor's office with tales of woe, I'm guessing you did the latter.
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 It's the start of a new school year, which means it's time to start thinking about school clothes. A lot of schools in our area allow students to wear street clothes, while others require uniforms. My daughter's school requires uniforms. While shopping at the only store in town that sells uniforms for my daughter's school, I noticed something curious: All the uniforms the store carried featured a colorful check or plaid pattern, whereas the uniform separates at the big-box stores were a solid color, mostly navy and khaki. What was the meaning of this?
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Hal Hutchison, M.Ed.Hal Wofford Hutchison, M.Ed., is a former columnist, writer and editor for the Arkansas Democrat and the Arkansas Gazette newspapers. She has also been a secondary educator, and a university counselor and administrator. She lives in Little Rock, Ark., with her husband of 23 years and their daughter. Archives
June 2018
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