Sheltered in the Sun

The conundrum isn’t a new one. In 1984, an unsigned editorial in the Jewish Observer had this to say: “Summer is a season for loosening up… The added space offers people an opportunity for exploration of their environment and beyond, as well as of their inner selves — a time for discovery and growth. Untended, untamed, the growth can become wild, tangled, a sorry mess.”

“All my ‘education’ came from the country,” remembers Rivka. Describing a widely shared experience, she recalls being on her own for hours at a time, running around in packs of kids of mixed ages, without any understanding of what topics were off-limits and what type of touch was a no-no. “We sat under a tree with long, overhanging vines, where no parent would ever come.” The memories of what she and her friends spoke of makes her fear for her kids.

Kids’ developmental needs haven’t changed, but the risks of exploration have exploded, says Mrs. Aliza Feder, head mechaneches at Bais Yaakov Machon Ora in Passaic, and a noted speaker and author. “The worst they could ever do, the worst they could ever access, has changed so much from when I was a teen thirty years ago,” she says. “Every time you think it can’t get worse, it gets worse.”

It’s enough to make a responsible parent want to ground her children for life.