Dear Straight Talk: You’ve been covering the idea of what it means to be a man. For me, it means standing up for what I believe. It means not being afraid to tell people what they need to hear.
Here’s an example: My 16-year-old recently came home with three D’s. I thought about talking to her, using encouraging words, telling her she could do better, etc., but my instincts were telling me to take action. I followed my instincts. After confiscating her cell phone, I sat down with her at her computer and made her delete each aspect of her MySpace profile. I was not angry, just firm. I told her when her grades improved, she could rebuild her profile and have her phone back. Now she has four hours of extra time each day to get her homework done, not to mention incentive.—El Dorado Hills Dad
Dear Dad: Should all teens be so lucky. You took the bull by the horns. Most teens don’t know how to control the time they spend online and on their cells. The medium is entrancing enough to have detrimental effects if left unchecked. It’s a parent’s job to set boundaries. Thanks for a great example of “handling it like a man”.
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