Hey, Parents Not Following Social Distancing Rules: You’re Making It Harder On The Rest Of Us 

I’ve been feeling a low-level of anger all the time these days. Then, when I see a group of teenagers walking together sans masks, touching shoulders, and people posting pictures on social media with graduation celebrations of teens throwing their hats in the air off a back deck, that anger rises in my chest and I want to scream.

I have teenagers living in my house. Teenagers who want to see their friends and constantly tell me they are the only ones not allowed to have friends over. My oldest tells me at least once a week that all his friends are getting together for a bonfire, a trip to the beach, or a pizza party at his friend’s house.

Supposedly they all hang out together during the day and roam the neighborhood.

Whether it’s all facts or not, I’m starting to believe most if it is true — I mean, he shows me their SnapChat stories in hopes of convincing me that he’s the one left out and I’ll feel bad and change my mind.

It’s not working. What it’s doing is making me mad at the selfish parents who are raising selfish kids. I’m sick of the excuses and hearing parents say they can’t control what their kids do.

Really? Because last time I checked, lives were on the line here, and the adults in the house had the ability to collect the car keys and cell phones (that they pay for) if their kids break the simple rule of staying at home.

What these cavalier parents aren’t getting is that the longer leash we have for our kids, the longer this nightmare is going to live on.

These parents who refuse to follow social distancing rules because they think they’re silly, or saying “this isn’t living,” must not believe the death toll. They must not take seriously the scary symptoms of Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome, which is affecting children and teens. That’s the only conclusion I can come to — because I don’t understand their thought process otherwise.

I still see posts almost once a day on Facebook from parents asking fellow parents if they think it’s okay to let their kids hang out with their friends right now.

They must think the fact that their child could get very sick and die from COVID-19 is a big fat hoax. How many times do they have to hear from a doctor this isn’t an old-person disease, or can only harm those with an underlying condition?

Putting your child’s wants first (and let’s face it, seeing their friends in person right now is a want, not a need) is self centered.

Certain parents are making it so much harder for the parents who are doing the right thing and keeping their kids at home right now. They are very clear in their intent — they don’t give a flying fuck about the state of the world and they certainly aren’t taking the time to think about what they’d do if their child got sick or infected another person (or people). There is no other answer.

It’s a horrible example to set for your kids. The whole world is advised to keep their distance from one another and take all the necessary precautions. That doesn’t mean letting your child run off to the skate park for a few hours with a bunch of friends, or allowing them to attend a freaking pool party.

Letting kids go about their merry way and hang out with their buds because “You don’t see the harm in it” or “It’s been long enough,” aren’t good enough excuses.

I wish all parents would take a moment to think about the message they are putting out there to other kids whose parents are playing by the rules. I want them to know about the difficulty they are causing for those who are respecting what the doctors tell us we need to do in order to stay safe.

I want them to think about the front line workers and the overloaded hospitals. By letting their kid go back to their normal life, they are adding to that, by a lot.

If their child was taking a drive by themselves for the first time, they’d tell them to wear their seatbelt and obey the traffic laws because if they don’t, there could be disastrous consequences, right?

And on top of that, they’d also worry about the other drivers on the road not being careful or paying attention, and fear someone could hit their child.

Parents who are letting their kids roam around as they wish are like the careless drivers of the world. They aren’t following the rules because they think they are above them, and nothing will happen.

Or maybe they think their kid is too important to stay in the house and practice social distancing because they aren’t really living, what with all the missing out and all.

Guess what? We are all missing out. In order to save lives. It’s actually worth it. And the careless parents of the world are making us miss out even longer.

They are like the buzzed drivers on the road right now thinking nothing will happen and their kids won’t harm anyone.

I want them to ask themselves if they’d let their kid get in a car after a few drinks and drive around? I bet the answer is no — because they are aware that the risk is too big.

It’s time for all parents to smarten up and realize this is no different … and do the right thing, no matter how hard it is, no matter how much they beg, so this shitshow can start moving in the right direction.