With third marking period grades in, it’s obvious my son has pulled himself up <strong>and</strong> out of the ashes of last marking periods troubling report card. Yes, even kids with gifted IQ fall off the good grade wagon, especially as the subject matter gets more challenging <strong>and</strong> they’re use to not having to put in much effort because school work always came easy. This issue has caused my son to hit the wall quite a few times in middle school. Add to this the issues of poor planning, not willing to ask for help or distractions, particularly of the electronic type. As with all kids, when my son applies himself he does quite well. <strong>The</strong> problem is getting him to apply himself when his mind keeps w<strong>and</strong>ering to the world of Minecraft, Pokemon or Skyl<strong>and</strong>ers. His desire to live in the electronic world, whether it’s simply surfing the great wide web or playing video games, far exceeds his desire to give more than the minimal when it comes to his school work. Not that he doesn’t like school. He loves learning. His mind is a sponge. He just doesn’t want to do the work that comes with it. He wants to learn the info, process it <strong>and</strong> move on. My sons poor report card lead to a complete ban of all things electronic. Mom became the keeper of his laptop, iPod Touch, wii remotes, <strong>and</strong> DS’s. During this ban, he was only allowed to use his laptop for school work <strong>and</strong> when I was present. <strong>The</strong>re was much whining at times, particularly during his down time. He would infer there wasn’t anything to do. At that point, I would tell him I would get rid of all his Legos, art stuff, books, guitar, African drum, board games, etc… I’m sure you get my point. My goal was to hopefully have him reconnect with the things that motivated him before video games entered his world. Note, I tried hard to keep these “brain sucking” devices out of our home. My son was 7 when he got his first game system, a DS, which in gamer years is old. <strong>The</strong> wii didn’t enter our home till he Zombified Video Game Players was 12 <strong>and</strong> I was hesitant because I had already seen addictive behavior rearing it’s ugly head when he played the DS. All the other devices were purchased, in the past two years, with money he saved from birthdays <strong>and</strong> Christmas. That in itself is a worthy trait, it’s just too bad the money is usually spent on electronics. <strong>The</strong> reversal of troubling grades means the moratorium on electronics has been lifted. Lord help me. Even with our “What would Carl do?” breakthrough, when video games are involved all bets are off. My son is like a junky in need of a fix. This past marking period was the equivalent of going to rehab for him. A rehab that reinforced his problem with self-control. On more than one occasion during this ban, he was busted for searching my room for his hidden electronics, which not only threatened an extended ban, it broke the trust between him <strong>and</strong> I. (Don’t know why he even tries, he always gets busted.) This trust has been broken <strong>and</strong> rebuilt more than once over the course of his gaming years. Stressing the importance of trust is a tough thing, particularly when a lack of self-control is what triggers IT’S A MATTER OF TRUST PUBLISHED: February 14, <strong>2014</strong> - wakingthewalker.wordpress.com the action that breaks the trust. I wonder, can pushing the trust issue make him aware of his self-control problem, particularly with electronics? Only time will tell. My son does underst<strong>and</strong> how important trust between us is, <strong>and</strong> we have had multiple discussions about it, but when his electronic addiction bites, the infection spreads quickly. Causing my sometimes rationally minded son to turn into a rabid zombie. He’s in a trance, staring into the glow of his electronic device, growling <strong>and</strong> hissing if he’s interrupted. (Beware he bites!) Nothing exists but the world on that screen. Breaking into that world <strong>and</strong> pulling him into the world of the living is next to impossible. That was until the apocalyptic world of “<strong>The</strong> Walking Dead” became a bonding agent for us. Somewhere in the peripheral edges of his mind, the mention of anything TWD related gets his attention enough to break the electronic hold. So, I am again turning to this zombie apocalypse world for guidance in tackling the trust issue. Trust or the lack thereof, is the thread that weaves through the storylines in “<strong>The</strong> Walking Dead.” I have on more than one occasion pointed this little detail out to my son. In particular, the trust between the father <strong>and</strong> son characters of Rick (Andrew Lincoln) <strong>and</strong> Carl (Ch<strong>and</strong>ler Riggs). Rick, having been separated from his family at the beginning of the apocalypse, would have become a zombie buffet if Glenn (Steven Yuen) hadn’t trusted his instincts believing it would be OK to bring Rick into his group. A group that would reunite Rick with his wife <strong>and</strong> son, which was Rick’s ultimate goal, in addition to surviving the apocalypse of course. Once reunited, besides fighting off zombies <strong>and</strong> looking for a safe haven, Rick’s real challenge was to hold his family together <strong>and</strong> somehow keep his son from growing up too fast. A feat that can be undaunting when one of your daily tasks is killing the undead. Rick knew though, at some point he would have to arm his son, (for me it was what was the right age to give my son a cell phone), but giving Carl a weapon, particularly a gun, was something he wanted to hold off on until he believed he was mature enough <strong>and</strong> could be trusted to use only in emergencies. Thank God he did when he did though, because if it wasn’t for Carl, Rick would have become zombie Shane’s dinner. Father trusts son, son saves his life. Carl has faced many serious “grown up” situations in which he appeared to prove he was making a wise choice when using his weapon. That was until he shot an unarmed teenager during an ambush by another group of survivors. (Yup, you have to fear the living too.) Needless to say, this disturbed Rick, the trust between he <strong>and</strong> Carl was broken. He took Carl’s gun, hung up his own gun <strong>and</strong> stepped down as head of the group so he could attempt to have a more “normal” relationship with his son. Carl was not happy about losing his weapon, (much like my son was about losing his electronics), but over time he appeared to underst<strong>and</strong>. All seemed just ducky between these two until the sanctuary they had created was destroyed by a sociopath <strong>and</strong> they were on the run again. By this point, Carl is a teenager <strong>and</strong> his actions <strong>and</strong> words prove that even in a zombie apocalypse a teenager can be an ungrateful snot nose. Going on a tirade, he blames his father for everything that went wrong <strong>and</strong> believes he could get by on his own without him. As his father lays passed out from the injuries he sustained during the attack, Carl goes on a scavenger hunt in search of food. This adventure proves to be a little too close for comfort for Carl, almost losing a battle with a walker. Once back at the house they are squatting in, a shaken Carl finds his father still passed out <strong>and</strong> believes his father may have died <strong>and</strong> is turning into a zombie. Holding a gun, ready to shoot, he has an epiphany, realizing he would rather die at the h<strong>and</strong>s of his father than go on alone. Fortunately, for Carl, Rick is not dying, <strong>and</strong> the two can go back to square one, rebuilding the trust that was hanging on by the flesh of a rotting zombie. See, even in an apocalypse, you can start anew. Granted, we don’t have to face the extremes the characters in “<strong>The</strong> Walking Dead” face, but I have found some of these situations to be really valid teaching tools. Or at least a door to open up discussions with my son. My son relates to Carl, he <strong>and</strong> the character are the same age, <strong>and</strong> seeing Carl diss his father really upset him. “How could he do that?” he said “that’s his dad.” Not that these two haven’t had major issues pop up between them before this, but they always seemed to have a genuine respect for each other. And as long as there is respect, you can rebuild the trust. This time though, Carl’s behavior was the epitome of disrespect. I too was stunned. I commented that he was behaving like a typical ungrateful teenager. My son responded, “I know I couldn’t make it without you.” I was speechless. So, there is hope even on the darkest days – that your “walker” will wake, having had the epiphany that makes him realize the root to any healthy <strong>and</strong> happy relationship is simply a matter of trust. On a side note, it has been about two weeks since my son has gotten his electronics back. With them came new rules regarding time allotments <strong>and</strong> a log sheet to track his time. <strong>The</strong> log sheet is my way of testing his self-control. He has always used a timer, but he would get so lost in his game that he wouldn’t even hear it, so, my theory is if he actually has to log in a start <strong>and</strong> stop time, he will be more conscious of actions, thus keeping him from being consumed by his electronic world. Will it work? Only time will tell. As can be expected, my son wasn’t thrilled about any of the new arrangements, but so far he is abiding by them. I’m hoping that his recent epiphany plays a role in finding a happy medium where electronics are concerned <strong>and</strong> that there won’t be a need for rehab again. Although, the threat of future rehabs is my best weapon in the battle against electronic zombification! Find out more at www.facebook.com/MariannE.DankoWriter or follow me on Twitter @Danko818 © Copyright <strong>2014</strong> Mariann E. Danko. All Rights Reserved.
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Pinwheels For Peace Mrs. Donna Mazzella, Art Teacher at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School, prepared the children for “Pinwheels for Peace Day”. It is an art <strong>and</strong> literacy project that allows students to express their feelings regarding peace. On <strong>September</strong> 21, 2011, people in over 2,400 locations throughout the world “planted” approximately a million pinwheels in public places, in order to promote their thoughts <strong>and</strong> feelings about peace. Students everywhere have been preparing for International Day of Peace, scheduled for <strong>September</strong> 21, <strong>2014</strong>, by creating pinwheels. As part of the creation process, students write their thoughts about peace, tolerance, cooperation, harmony <strong>and</strong> love on the side of the pinwheel. On the other side, students draw to visually express their feelings. LOCAL HAPPENINGS 27 Download your pinwheel template at www.pinwheelsforpeace.com Check us out online at www.thebelt<strong>and</strong>beyond.com Also on 0 LIKE us on f<strong>The</strong> <strong>Belt</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Beyond</strong> to stay up to date!
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