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Thoughts For Thursday: A Sad Story Behind Show And Tell

September 21, 2011 · 31 comments

in Life, Thoughts For Thursday

When I was a kid, I hated show and tell.  I was usually bored listening to others during show and tell, and I am sure people were equally bored when I brought something in for show and tell.  Plus, I was incredibly shy in my younger years, and being forced to stand up in front of a bunch of 5 years olds and  a teacher seemed torturous to me.  I am sure what I did bring in was incredibly mundane, and I cannot remember one thing I ever ‘presented’ during ‘show and tell’.

Twenty five years later, it was then my kid’s turn to drag in something to school to talk about with their classmates.  It wasn’t called ‘show and tell’ anymore though, it had evolved into ‘show and share’.  I don’t know if this new term was specific to the preschool my kids went to, or if ‘show and share’ had swept the nation.  I wondered if our country had  gotten so politically correct that kids can’t “tell”, but they “share” instead?  Is “show” too bold?  Should it be “display and share”?

Anyway, the teachers in my kid’s preschool did not allow the children to bring in anything expensive or huge.  Kids brought in beanie babies, action figures, books, etc.  Probably the same things that my generation brought in, but since my memory is gone, I can’t really say for sure.

Unfortunately, Show and Tell/Share was recently taken to a new level recently in Sweet Springs, Missouri.  This past week, a child brought in a couple of items for show and tell that I would not even recognize.  Instead of bringing in a G.I. Joe or baseball mitt to share, this kindergartner brought in a crack pipe and some meth.  It is so sad because the little boy had his ‘goodies’, and was all excited for show and tell.  Fortunately, the teacher realized what he had brought before he had a chance to ‘share’ and she called the police.  The boy’s mom was arrested and later released on bond.

This story really broke my heart.  What kind of home does this little guy live in that he can just grab some meth on his way out the door and his mom doesn’t even notice?  Geez, when my kids were 5, I still stored the Cascade up in a high cabinet and had plug protectors in the outlets.  What kind of a future does this little guy have? A mom is supposed to protect and teach her kids right from wrong.  Instead, this mom is apparently just living ‘wrong’, and who knows what this little fella sees day in and day out.

I sure hope there is someone in this little boy’s family that is looking out for him…

 

 

 

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{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }

Matt Wegner @ Financial Excellence September 21, 2011 at 11:03 pm

Wow, that’s really sad. I don’t even know what to say in response to that. My heart goes out to that child.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:16 am

I want my tax money to go to him, and kids like him. Not to the government so they can repair random square of road in our subdivision.

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Jon - Free Money Wisdom September 21, 2011 at 11:04 pm

Wow. That is devastating. What is wrong with parents these days? Poor kid.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:15 am

Parents like this are obviously selfish and forget that they are totally responsible for young children.

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MoneyforCollegePro September 22, 2011 at 5:27 am

Wow, that really is sad. Unfortunately, I think this type of problem is all too common in this country.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:15 am

I totally agree. It isn’t just in poor areas either. I think drugs are common in all social circles. It is just a question of who hides it better.

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The Biz of Life September 22, 2011 at 8:09 am

All I can say is I hope there are relatives who can take him into their house and remove him from the environment that he is in.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:14 am

Apparently he is with relatives. Lets hope that part of the family makes better decisions- although I guess they can’t be much worse.

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Darla September 22, 2011 at 8:38 am

The story is that she is a widow and was given a substantial sum of money due to the circumstances surrounding his death. The ‘crack’ actually turned to be about $3700 worth of meth. Family says she has been struggling with the loss and has clearly been making bad very bad choices. The news reported that the child is in the care of relatives at this time.
It is a very sad story, but maybe this wake up call will be what it takes to get her clean and take care of her child and life.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:14 am

Yeah, I knew it was meth, but maybe you use it with a crack pipe? (I have no idea, I am totally clueless about drugs. I can’t even stand to watch people do drugs in movies, it is so disturbing.)

The article I read didn’t state where the child was living, just that mom was arrested 6 days later. 6 days???!!!

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Niki September 22, 2011 at 8:40 am

I heard about this yesterday. It is beyond heartbreaking.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:12 am

What is also heartbreaking is how many kids just like him are out there in the world…

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Jason@LiveRealNow September 22, 2011 at 9:31 am

“Geez, when my kids were 5, I still stored the Cascade up in a high cabinet and had plug protectors in the outlets.”

But where do you store your meth?

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:10 am

That’s what is really in the Cascade box.

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Little House September 22, 2011 at 10:00 am

That’s so sad. It really is depressing to think there are “parents” out there that shouldn’t be parents. Then, there are people who would make terrific parents, but can’t have kids. It just goes to show that life just isn’t fair. Hopefully this kid will have some positive role models in his life and be able to break out of whatever situation he is in and make a better life for himself.

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Kris September 22, 2011 at 11:12 am

Isn’t that the truth Little House? I have always wondered how drug users and such seem to have no problems getting pregnant, yet others struggle so much (sometimes).

I think this kid should start writing a book. He could look at his life like it is a movie and pretend it is happening to someone else. Obviously he is too young for that, but I wish there was a way these experiences didn’t go too deep.

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Ashley @ Money Talks September 22, 2011 at 1:32 pm

UG. Terrible and sad. BTW… it’s still ‘show and tell’ at my kid’s school.

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Kris September 23, 2011 at 11:37 pm

OK, so maybe show and share was just at our school!

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krantcents September 22, 2011 at 3:56 pm

Bad parenting is rampant and I don’t know what the solution is. As a teacher, I see it all the time. We say that kids are important and yet we don’t show our kids they are important. Making them a priority would be a huge change!

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Kris September 23, 2011 at 11:37 pm

KC, I would think it would be very hard to be a teacher these days. It seems like parents have the upper hand, and teachers have less flexibility to discipline (I am not saying paddling, but it seems parents think their kids can do no wrong these days).

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First Gen American September 23, 2011 at 9:39 am

My son went to head start, which we paid full tuition for, but many of the kids in his class were from homes like these. The program was subsidized with tax dollars and I am 100% supportive of my taxes going to something like that.

Those poor kids LOVED head start. They had a safe place to play, lots of toys,it was clean, they loved learning and had 2 meals and 2 snacks at predictable times. Most of the time they were well behaved too because they didn’t want to be sent home. The poor teachers said that they knew that friday’s lunch was the last square meal many of these kids got til monday morning.

I also support the free lunch programs at school. Our kids should never go hungry no matter how big a screw up their parents are.

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Kris September 23, 2011 at 11:36 pm

I totally agree Sandy. I know there are some that abuse the free lunch program, but that is true of all programs. Kids deserve to be fed and sheltered, and I am all for helping the kiddos of the world.

What did your kids think of the situations of the other children? Or, were they really too young to be aware of that kind of thing?

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Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager September 23, 2011 at 1:43 pm

What a heart breaking story…

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retirebyforty September 23, 2011 at 2:21 pm

That’s pretty sad, but I’m not surprised after watching Breaking Bad. We had a huge meth problem in Oregon a few years ago and there are always stories in the paper. Meth is awful.

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Kris September 23, 2011 at 11:33 pm

I am so dumb about drugs, I really don’t even know what Meth is. All I know is that I think meth is the reason I have to buy allergy medicines at the pharmacy counter. It is amazing the lengths people will go to for a high. I wish people would find other ways to escape whatever is bad in their life than drugs and alcohol.

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101 Centavos September 23, 2011 at 6:41 pm

A sad story, no doubt. Some kids rise above it and achieve success in life, but most don’t. Hard to get ahead when you start out so far behind.

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Kris September 23, 2011 at 11:31 pm

101 I always find it interesting who comes out ok from bad environments and who doesn’t. I assume some is luck, and I sure hope this little guy has some of that!

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Buck Inspire September 24, 2011 at 12:23 pm

What a story. Life is funny, the responsible adults who want kids sometimes can’t and the ones out of control can pop them out effortlessly. It’s odd with our economy so messed up and unemployment running high, people still have money for drugs? Guess for them, drugs is as essential as food. Hope the kid gets help.

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Kris September 27, 2011 at 3:40 pm

I wonder if part of the problem is the availability of drugs? People get down and love an escape, and if the escape is easily accessible? I don’t know, but it is so sad for this little boy, and all the others out there like him.

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Invest It Wisely September 24, 2011 at 2:11 pm

I really hope that the government is not subsidizing these clearly irresponsible parents. I truly hope that this kid can find a better home — that is one of the saddest things I’ve ever heard of and I feel truly bad for him.

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Kris September 27, 2011 at 3:37 pm

The only good thing about government subsidizing is hopefully the kid would get some food.

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