An Insider Perspective on My "Helicopter Parents"

 

An Insider Perspective on My "Helicopter Parents"

By: Akeel Dixon

Prompt:

• Do you have helicopter parents?

My parents have been referred to as “helicopter parents” in the past and present. Most of these instances come from people who look at my family’s life from an outside perspective, and in my opinion come off as judgemental or uninformed. My mom and dad have done so much for me and I believe that without them I wouldn’t be the person I am today, they’re the people who take time out of their day to go to my events and make sure that I’m safe at a stranger’s house. I don’t understand why we use such a derogatory word for people who truly care about their child’s wellbeing.

If I were to recall the first times my parents were looked down upon for supporting me they occurred throughout preschool and elementary school. I remember rushing over to hug them whenever they came to pick me up from school making other parents jealous, encouraging them to use the label. An instance occurred in 1st grade however, where every student had to do a sort of talent show. I had let my parents know it was my turn and they came up with the idea of singing our family song we had when we were younger. I said I was willing to do it at the moment but when it came to the day to perform I was overcome with stage fright from a sense that my classmates would find my performance “cringey”, however my parents took time out of their days and their jobs just to perform a song for 30 seconds that their own child agreed too and he didn’t even participate. 

When it comes to my friends and my social relationships my parents aren’t necessarily bothered with who I am friends with. The “helicopter parent” role comes into play when my friends invite me over for hanging out, having a party, etc.. When I was younger I remember going to my friend’s houses all the time. It has definitely occurred less in recent years, but I don’t find that to blame on my parents in fact it falls more on myself. From experience and verbal witness the two necessities my parents need me to have when going to an event is, “Do they know the hosts?, or "Are there any trusted adults who will be watching over our children” the other is “Was the event communicated to them beforehand and not the day before or of the event. Step one is usually always cleared as my parents know my friend’s parents, however I miss the mark with step two most of the time. Because both of my parents are professors of communication at the U of I, it’s essential that I communicate with them what I am doing and when an event is because that improves how effectively a day can go or in this instance how my family can run. I am not planning to drop a truth nuke on me and my friends but we as a group have extremely poor communication. Because my parents often get notified of plans at the last minute, I assume many of my friends think my parents want me to eschew them or their events. However, looking into myself I demonstrated a blithe nature from meeting up with my friends which prevented me from telling my parents about the events. 

For what it’s worth I understand from an outside perspective why my parents may seem to be living another life through me and my brother however as someone with a behind the scenes perspective that is far from the case in my opinion. As me and my friends both yearn for more interactions we both have to consider I am being raised and cared for by professors of communication but most importantly, loving, determined, and perfect parents. I wouldn't want anyone judging their parenting skills with an uneducated perspective.

Feedback:

I personally think this essay is a huge step above my first one, I do want to know if I was every repetitive though or if there was something that wasn't explained enough