Homeschool Fiction

I hear parents at parks demanding their children to share their possessions with the stranger children around us. It makes me want to walk up to the adults and demand their car keys, afterall they should be sharing their most favorite possessions with me, a perfect stranger, and I’m rather fond of their car so I think I’ll start there. Then, perhaps, I’ll ask for their cell phone because it’s rather nicer than mine… Nevermind the fact that I’ve never met them before in my life.

This way of thinking is ridiculous! I have no more right to a stranger’s (or friend or family member’s) car than my child has to her best friend’s toy. Our personal property is just that — personal. If someone I cared about wanted to borrow a non-precious something of mine and I wasn’t going to be using it, I’d very happily let them borrow it. Books, movies, even car perhaps all would get a yes, but wedding ring — no, it’s only mine. If they wanted to look at my ring (which is a very cool puzzle ring), I’d happily let them look at it, touch it, play with it even. But, they couldn’t borrow it or keep it. It’s mine and I’m not sharing.

Selfishness is not evil. Being raised in the United States, I was certainly led to believe it is. It wasn’t until I read Ayn Rand’s book Atlas Shrugged (for a non-credit class in college) that I started questioning this way of thinking. I became intoxicated with her way of thinking and I ate up every book and article she ever wrote (the books are more entertaining) until I fell into a new paradigm of living and thinking: Selfishness is not evil. It isn’t until a person is truly knowledgeable about her needs and demands herself to take care of getting her needs met, that she is fully able to give to others selflessly, fully, and completely (read The Virtue of Selfishness for more details on this philosophy). This is where many people misinterpret Rand. Many think of her philosophy as greedy money grubbing. It’s the exact OPPOSITE of that! She demands that people become aware of what they have to offer to this world and that they do it to the absolute best of their abilities. Life should be lived well and fully. She believes, as I do, that we should all strive to be the best we can be every single day. When this happens, our needs are fully met and we are able to give to others who are also living to their highest ability. This type of interdependence is not a bad thing. Yet, we, as full grown adults, don’t have the born right to be lazy yet receive benefits from other people’s hard work until we are doing something useful ourselves (and even then we don’t deserve it as a born “right”).

By the time most people are grown, they are very very selfish in a very very bad way. They’ve lived for so many years with their true needs (as children) not being met, they feel justified in demanding others to give them things (especially their own children — chores are a symptom of this) since they are now in the position to demand it properly. This is called bullying. Bullying is bad, especially when it is done to children! All this accomplishes is that the cycle of needy-greedy continues. No, this way of thinking does not “spoil” children.

If you’re wondering about us, my children will be the ones at the playground that only bring toys they are willing to share since taunting untouchables is not something they’d want to do. They know to keep their special private possessions safe. Yet, they are the most giving children I’ve ever met and would probably give you their shoes if someone truly wanted them. They know their needs and they are fulfilled, thus their wells are full to the point of overflowing and they overflow their love onto the rest of the world. I’m proud of their abilities to always stand up for what they believe and to never give in to others unreasonable demands. When others insist their children share with me or mine, I’m there to say, “It’s alright if you don’t want to let us play with your toy. We understand it’s special and it’s yours.” I never force any child to share — ever. Knowing this and living this, mine “share” all the time.

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By: Lisa