As the mother of a 10 year old, who isn’t a child but not really an adult, I am trying to be a sympathetic and understanding ally but still have the lines drawn so that we are both clear on who is the parent and who is the child. I remember 10 and it blows my mind that I am now a mother to a 10 year old. I was in the fifth grade at 10, lived with my parents in a 2 bedroom apartment in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and I had no inkling of what social media would be. It was definitely a simpler time. I don’t envy my kids – it seems that even though technology is a blessing, it is more of a curse to them and their peers. Sure, they can Google something and never have to step foot in a library but I see how addicting and how that in turn has changed the dynamics between kids.

As a kid, I remember how we enjoyed being out all day playing with our friends. My mother would tell us to get lost and not come home until dinner time. We lived in a time when our neighbors all lent a hand and kept an eye on us. Summers were carefree and fun and we never whined about being “bored”. My kids live in a 2-income household so we rely on someone else to watch our kids while we work. There are days I am very grateful but there are other days when I resent not being able to stay home with my kids. We couldn’t let our kids play in the front of the house because I am sure one of the neighbors would call Child Services and complain of our negligence. And because of the fast paced speed of today’s world, a moment of calm and silence is confused for boredom.

At 10, almost eleven, it’s hard to put much stock in the words of a parent but I hope that I can teach my kid that it’s okay to go slow and not rush growing up. To live in the moment and to be authentic. Don’t be afraid to try something, even if you aren’t good at it. To always be patient and kind, especially to oneself – something a person never thinks of doing until way later in life. I hope that my kid can use technology but also know there is a world and a life to be lived without it.