MAPs and the inner child

[BLueRibbon]

I agree with you, but it's worth noting that what you're describing is a western problem.

You can interact (non-sexually) with children where I live, without people calling you a pedophile.

[Curson]

Honestly, I find it very painful and frustrating that we can have the same hobbies and interests but have to be excluded from interacting with children or young adults because we're not the same age. People seem like they're heavily under scrutiny as adults these days.

[Officerkrupke]

I agree with you, but it's worth noting that what you're describing is a western problem.

You can interact (non-sexually) with children where I live, without people calling you a pedophile.

Hard to fathom in USA. You be given the side eye and people would wonder if you had hidden motives for being so friendly.

[FairBlueLove]

What you write is beautiful and I agree with you.

Fortunately, as BR writes, there are still places on Earth where this divide is not there, or is less marked.

I live in the EU, where societal attitudes aren’t as polarized as in the US (though we’re definitely getting closer by the day). When kids come to me - like, when they actually ask for interaction instead of me trying to start it (I’m usually too timid to take the first step myself) - I’ll jump in without hesitation. I enjoy those moments, and I also see them as a small way to push back against what western society seems to be heading toward, trying to break the vicious pattern that starts when other people frown upon adults engaging with kids. That attitude makes it easier for us to pull back, which in turn makes kids more isolated or harder for them to see us as anything but distant figures. When we step away, they learn to expect that distance, and others, or even ourselves, find it easier to justify staying away. But when I do jump in, even if just for a few minutes, it feels like a tiny crack in that wall.

[Curson]

What you write is beautiful and I agree with you.

Fortunately, as BR writes, there are still places on Earth where this divide is not there, or is less marked.

I live in the EU, where societal attitudes aren’t as polarized as in the US (though we’re definitely getting closer by the day). When kids come to me - like, when they actually ask for interaction instead of me trying to start it (I’m usually too timid to take the first step myself) - I’ll jump in without hesitation. I enjoy those moments, and I also see them as a small way to push back against what western society seems to be heading toward, trying to break the vicious pattern that starts when other people frown upon adults engaging with kids. That attitude makes it easier for us to pull back, which in turn makes kids more isolated or harder for them to see us as anything but distant figures. When we step away, they learn to expect that distance, and others, or even ourselves, find it easier to justify staying away. But when I do jump in, even if just for a few minutes, it feels like a tiny crack in that wall.

How do people lift such attitudes in the US? I guess that's my question.