The Dissolute Children

P. Donohue Shortridge/Family/The Dissolute Children
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The Dissolute Children

Age:
usually between six and twelve years old, but can be younger
and/or older.

Where:
These children are seen everywhere; grocery stores, malls,
gas stations, playgrounds, restaurants, movie theaters, airports,
sporting events, in school, on public transportation, in tourist
places and at the local pool and, in other people's homes as well
as in their own home and neighborhoods.

Attire:
for girls:
fingernail polish; at least one trendy hair or body adornment; a
purse; clothes such as seen worn on teenagers; footwear such as
jellies, flimsy sandals or flop-flops none of which are conducive
to running and playing.
for boys:
a tee-shirt with a logo of an action figure, a sports team or a
corporation selling clothes; expensive sneakers; something in
their hands like a Game Boy or some other distraction.

Demeanor and appearance:
These children are pasty and pale, not rosy cheeked; their
eyes are unfocused and not clear and always scanning about the
scene, seeking something outside of themselves and cannot look
you in the eye when speaking to you; their voices are either
whiny or rude and they engage with parents in antagonistic ways;
they are not aware of immediate surroundings or people; they
fidget; they seem older than they look; they appear battle weary
from continual conflict of some kind; they do not seem congruent
in their body, mind, emotion and spirit.

Parents:
The parents are usually somewhere in the vicinity of these
children - they do not appear to be concerned or embarrassed,
thus, one concludes this is typical appearance/behavior; the
parents appear either disinterested, worn down or antagonistic;
they often speak rudely to or tease these children; they
frequently negotiate with their children that which is not
negotiable; they seem surprised or annoyed and often unprepared
when child needs to use rest room, needs a drink of water, is low
on blood sugar or needs a quick hug or clean up. In fact, the
parents do not appear to be involved with these children very
much, so even though they are in the same place, they do not seem
to be together.

What they are doing:
These children are wanting and needing, and thus are often
consuming. They relentlessly ask for something to be bought for
them and act like they expect to get it. When they do get it,
they become only momentarily sated, but never really satisfied.
They are simultaneously busy manipulating every situation, either
by whining or by behaving obnoxiously; they speak rudely to
parents; they grab things from others and off shelves; they can
be destructive, hurting animals, laughing at other people,
running in places not appropriate for running, breaking things or
damaging merchandise; their games are mean spirited, jokes are
cruel, they lie and cheat, they do not own up to mistakes, guilt
or fault and do not seem to know what to do if they injure
someone; conversely some of them appear to be shell shocked,
overstimulated and thus shut down and passive.

For all of these children, their voices and behaviors are not the
joyous sounds and sights of childhood, but rather are the wails
of dissipation. And although it may seem that these children are
the typical children, nevertheless, they are not the normal
children*.

*See my essay, The Normal Children

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