Every now and then I read to much on current events and I feel the burning desire to save the children. A lot of them are doing good, but I’ve always felt a deep spot in my heart for children in situations they shouldn’t be in. It’s not because I’ve ever been in an abusive situation as a child. I had a wonderful childhood, it was tainted by some things, crippling separation anxiety in first grade, a bipolar diagnoses at the age of six, being bullied till I was suicidal in middle school, but really none of that stood a chance against how well loved and protected I was by my parents, family, and friends. My heart aches for children who don’t have that, or for adults who didn’t have that as a child, because that got me through all sorts of things.

That’s what I want to talk about, not how terrible it can be or how good it can be, but what a difference a stable source of good can make in a child’s life. It’s not a news flash, everyone knows that broken homes can do some serious damage, but as my friends start having babies and I work towards that age were I want to as well I’ve been thinking a lot about what you can protect kids from and what you can’t.

There is a ton that you have no control over whether you are the child or the adult looking after them. Bad things happen, to everyone, over and over again, but if we have enough good to counteract that bad we can get somewhere healthy and happy. It doesn’t matter if you are a parent, a family friend, a teacher, or an older sibling, being a stable source of dependability and goodness to a child can save their lives in more ways than one.

It can help them feel less alone, it can give them someone to confide in, and it can give them someone to go to for help, these are invaluable. If I never told my mom I was suicidal in middle school I wouldn’t be here. She took the steps to help keep me safe from myself, and I told her because I knew I could trust her. Simply being a trustworthy adult is a huge thing to children and teens.

You can also be a relief. Sometimes that’s whats needed. Children don’t always need you to solve their problems, sometimes you can’t, but simply being there with a smile and a few jokes can help pull a child away from their issues and remind them that there are good things in the world. Be a source of good. Be a source of dependable goodness and you’ve already done a giant favor to the children in your life.

This might seem like a long babbling post for someone who doesn’t have a child, but we’ve all been children and the fact that I look back and say that childhood was amazing when it was also riddled with trying to find the right medications, mood swings, huge anxiety attacks that made me throw up, and terrible and cruel bullying says a lot. I was saved by a support system greater than kids my age, and though I don’t have kids yet, I strive to be that person in all children that I meet.

We have a responsibility to the younger generation, it’s time we use it for all the good we can.