I'm Not A Spoiled Brat!

I'm was driving through town today, navigating the hustle and bustle that predictably accompanies this time of year with everyone getting their kids ready to go back to school. As I was sitting at an intersection waiting for the light to turn, I noticed the personalized license plate frame on the Audi in front of me. It read, "I'm not a spoiled brat....I'm not, I'm not, I'm not!"

Now, I could understand this slogan being emblazoned on the t-shirt of a precocious toddler but the car in question was being driven by a woman who appeared to be in her mid-thirties. A mom, with children of her own, who had chosen to proudly proclaim herself a spoiled brat.

I remember as a small child being admonished to not behave like a spoiled brat. Being labeled thus was embarrassing and humiliating. It was definitely not a badge of honor or something to boast about as we see from the woman in question. I would like to suggest that this woman is a rarity or an aberration but that simply isn't the case. The attitude conveyed by that ridiculous license plate frame sums up much of what is wrong with modern women who choose to proudly display their immaturity, selfishness and disregard for others. They revel in their ability to abjure personal responsibility and brag about being able to get away with behaving like spoiled children.

I happen to feel intensely sorry for this woman's husband, along with all husbands who are married to women like her, who, instead of a partner and help meet, are burdened with an additional child to raise....a child that they cannot ground, punish or restrict....a child with the ability to take from them everything they hold dear should she not get her own way.

A marriage is supposed to be a collaboration of adults...two people joined and working together....fully committed to the best interests of their marriage and family. It is not supposed to be a man shouldering all responsibility, not only for the children he sires, but also for the adult he's married to.

Children should have the benefit of being raised by adults...mature individuals who are able to teach them fundamental lessons on behavior and accountability. How can we possibly expect children to understand the value of personal responsibility when they are being raised by women who flaunt their ability to avoid such responsibiliy? How is a young girl going to understand the value she should bring as a wife and mother if she is raised by a woman who ignores her obligations in exchange for the ability to behave as a spoiled child.

As a wife and mother, I tend not to think in terms of me or what I want. I think about my family; what is best for my marriage and how I can best serve the interests of my children because that is my responsibility....the obligation I accepted when I chose to get married and to have children. There is no room as a wife and mother for behaving like a spoiled, selfish, immature child. It is a mother's job to teach her children not to behave thus, teaching first and foremost through her own example.