Grown Ups Don’t Behave Like That Or Do They
When I was a boy, I was an emotional child. I took things very much to heart and I got wounded by the words of others. I can recall that when I would have a bad day, where insults were thrown etc, I would go home and be noticeably upset. When I was in that place, I was told, “Don’t worry, grown ups don’t behave like that”.
This phrase has been rolling around my thoughts for sometime now, watching, albeit from a distance, the US Presidential Campaign. I love the cut and thrust of politics, the great debates, the ideas and ideals that come out in an election. I am horrified by what I am seeing in this race. This horror is both as a human being and as a psychotherapist. The language used, the images created, the misogyny, the untruths, are these the ideals we want to say to our children are ok?
I see many clients who have issues with women, old outdated ideas which cause difficulties in relationships as well as difficulties getting through life. How much more difficult is it to help people to realise that we are all equal is it when we have a person who is running for one of the most important jobs in the world treating women like objects and property. I am not a parent, but I must admit I would find it difficult to tell my child if I was “Don’t worry, grown ups don’t behave like that”, I would be far more inclined to say, “Be afraid, grown ups behave worse than you could ever imagine.”
