The 8 Year Old Preacher

Children say they want to do all sorts of things. Should responsible adults let them?

I've always wondered about parents who put their kids on the stage or on TV, and now I wonder about the woman who put her grandson in the pulpit, and on the Today show, as an 8 year old minister.

Their explanation (excuse?) is invariably 'But he/she wants to be an actor/singer/beauty pageant contestant. It's all them, not me. The child insisted. I'm just going along with them. They wouldn't have it any other way.'

How did the child become the person who set the family agenda? Kids want to be all sorts of things. They want to be firemen, cowboys, and astronauts. They want to be President. I have somehow missed departments hiring mini-hose draggers, third graders leaving school to go riding and roping, and children on space missions. And last time I checked there was still an age requirement to be President.

We tell our kids they have to wait till they're grown to achieve their goals all the time. We tell them because it's dangerous, because they need more maturity, because they aren't ready to set their life path when they're too young to make a contract.

Unless it's something that will draw attention, wealth, power, or success to the parent. Then it's okay.