area, my husband and I decided
that we would do as much as
we could to control their social
group. We kept them busy in
tennis, music lessons, dance,
gymnastics, swimming, girl
scouts. When they bored of
one, we moved them to another.
Our two girls were too busy or
too tired to join a gang.
because the child won the bet
on her grades. Now you have
to wear a silly hat for a week and
get a good laugh with your children at the same time.
Families who laugh together
can pray together. You gotta
earn your children’s trust and
their confidence that no matter
what, Mom and Dad still love
Parents can reproduce that good me. Young people love to hear
feeling that children seek in a their peers say, “I got you.” They
gang by celebrating the child’s want to know that somebody has
achievements with a dinner at their backs. Gangs begin to look
their favorite restaurant or per- very appealing in a young child’s
form some crazy harmless act mind when parents are unavail-
able. However, when the spirit of
love is strongly communicated in
a household, it conquers all fear
of rejection from others: “There
is no fear in love, but perfect love
casts out fear . . .” (I John 4:18)
When young people join gangs,
in reality, they are just searching for love, but when they know
that love is at home, the search
becomes unnecessary.
Margo McKenzie. Wife, mother
of two, educator, writer. See
more of her writing at www.giftofletters.com.