Perspective

My step daughter is a Junior this year.  which means that next year she is a senior.  which means the next year, she is a college student.  you know, if that's what she wants to do.  personaly i'm not a big fan of college.  i went.  it was ok.  it's just that i don't really see any kind of return on that investment, you know.  but then again, the degree i persued was theater and art.  unless you're one of the golden chosen, there's not a lot you can do with that.  i would be just as happy if my children went into the militairy or a trade school.  learn something useful, you know?  digressing.  she's picked out the school she wants to go to, and of course i immedietly did a google search for rape statistics on that campus.

please read that sentance again. 

one more time.

she told me the school of her choice, and unstead of loooking into how long of a drive it is, campus activities, or anything to do with her major, what is the first thing i look up?  rape statistics.  because as much as i love my step daghter and trust her in all her decisions, i know the likelyhood of her being raped is greater in her freshman year of college than any other time in her life. 

this is a problem people.  one that isn't going away.  i've armed her as well as i can.  i've given her the speaches, i've drilled "my body my choice" into her squishy developing brain.  i've tried to give her as much healthy self esteem as i possibly can.  i've taught her when to fight and when to run away.  how to hold her keys so they are wolverene claws.  i've prepared her.

and it has pissed me off.  There should be no reason that i should be telling her how to avoid being raped.  i should be telling her how to sew her own clothes.  how to use a jackhammer.  how to shred on air guitar.  not how to avoid a brutal assault.  not how to stop someone from breaking her, completely, inside and out. 

but it has dawned on me that while the problem is massive, i am in a unique position to be  part of the solution as well.  i have a 5 year old son, most of you know him.  when we go over his sight words and alphabet each night, there are a few phrases that work their way into the mix.  "no means no", "your body your choice".  things like that.  we talk about how it's never ok to hit.  to keep our hands to ourselves.  that everything diserves respect, no matter what.  and shouldn't everybody follow the same rules?  if we teach an entire generation something as simple as "everything diserves respect", how much will that change the world?