BE AWARE of the Code of Silence

[Sumina]

Parents: Are you harbouring a runaway? Is your child aiding and abetting a runaway? Are you or do you know someone 18 years of age or older who is consorting with a minor or possible statutory rape. Well this is what I am finding out there today as our kids have got you snowed by their stories of woe. BE AWARE

Our kids have a strong communication force with each other through their MSN and Nexopia chat lines and they are way ahead of us because we as parents have lost that art of communication with each other. Why is it that parents just believe kids when they say my friend got kicked out of the house can she stay here or can my friend stay over night - parent reply "is it ok with your folks" Yes, said the child. WHY DID YOU, AS THE PARENT, NOT CONFIRM THIS YOURSELF! In a lot of cases that child didn't have permission and is using you to hurt their parent. Your child may know where a runaway is but they will lie to your face and say they don't know to protect their code of silence. BE AWARE

It doesn't take much effort to say to the child I want to speak to your parent and if the child all of a sudden says they can't stay, you then know they are most likely a runaway. My advice is to say to them "Do you need a place to stay tonight?" and then quietly call the police. The police will then contact the worrying parent and communication can then start and valuable time and resources are not wasted. By not doing anything and believing that a safe house is better than the streets you are only fooling yourself and contributing to the bad behaviour. BE AWARE.

Before you just accept kids into your home, ask yourself one thing: If the situation was reversed, would I want the parent to care enough to notify me that my child was safe. We can't force them home but perhaps we can help financially or keep the lines of communication open and help the child see that running away doesn't solve their problems. BE AWARE

Remember the terms at the beginning? Although the police cannot do much about it, we as parents have the right to press civil charges. One day a parent may REACT and do just that rather than think through another scenario that has better results - a grieving parent can do silly things. Do you want that legal responsibility if that child dies under your care? BE AWARE

I think Crystal Meth BC should start a parent chat room so we can have the same secretive communication to keep one step ahead of our kids. It's time you got computer savy if only to save your child's life. I know a lot of the kid's names but have no clue of their phone numbers or where they live and if we could go on-line and send out an alert through the internet grape vine we may have a fighting chance for our kids to survive before they get drawn down the pathway of no return.