Growing Up

The debrief last night (with the focus being 'we are powerful') was centered in our group around the idea that the children of age 10/11/12 at ASHA were taking full responsibility of pregnant women, the elderly etc which are all responsibilities we do not face until much later in life, once we are considered 'mature enough'. Chris, Sam and Ben turned this into a comment of how responsibility, and therefore maturity, is delayed for such a long time in our New Zealand lives. For example, a large weight being placed on becoming a prefect when you're eighteen - which in reality is a relatively small responsibility. Walking out of the debrief feeling pampered with my New Zealand life and guilty that I had not "stepped up to the plate" and yet also frustrated that the people we look up to (parents and the like) seem to view age as such a barrier to maturity. As Chris aptly noted, we regularly hear the terms "you'll understand it when you grow up" or it's "adult conversation". Less and less I view growing up as a matter of ticking off years but more as a concept of becoming someone responsible and respected. I guess this struggle for responsibility and respect is a problem faced by each of us and yet while the ASHA kids at the slum are technically only kids I see them as very grown up.

While I have thought this I do also admit that the pampering that I received in my childhood is not at all negative. I don't want this blog to seem critical of parenting in New Zealand for I think that the way that we have been carried on a silver platter through our younger years has given us something the slum children dream for - a childhood.

Hugo