Model Citizenship

This entry is a milestone of sorts - it is the 30th entry on Model Citizenship and the first story related to parenting…

While I am myself a parent, I would never claim to be an expert at parenting. In fact, anyone who claims such capability likely has serious issues of their own… I do however have a sense for what is appropriate when it comes to kids in public places. Some examples of potentially volatile situations involving children and the public realm include: Babies on airplanes, Babies at the movies, Toddlers at the grocery store and so on…

In this particular story, the forum happens to be a restaurant. Surprised? I didn’t think so… We all know there are endless potential pitfalls with the child / restaurant relationship: The fussy child; the food thrower; the runner; the silverware drummer; and the ever-popular screamer. You have to be on top of your game to pull off a sit-down dinning-out experience that does not incite a riot at your favorite eatery… Enter what apparently was ladies night out - to Claim Jumper.

In this story, we open with three mothers sitting at a 4-top (restaurant speak for a table and 4 chairs). The conversation is light and typical. The restaurant is filling up so their voices are just slightly elevated, but judging from the casual tone at the table this is likely a somewhat regular meeting. As our meal progressed the full scope of their night out became apparent. Apparently, these not-so-model mommies established a kiddie table for five in a booth near their 4-top.

The “absentee supervision” was not a good idea.

 The moment the newness of their meal was gone, order at the table of little misfits quickly gave way to chaos. The first notable change was the general volume at the booth – faint chatter became occasional shouting; which gave way to constant shrieking. The only parental guidance the children received from their mothers was an occasional “let’s keep it down girls” synchronized with additional trips to the produce bar.

Tensions were rising at the booths and tables around the children – the restless shifts, the occasional glances (toward the girls and the mothers), and the polite half smiles when the bedlam reach a new high (or low in social terms). Yet, the mothers carried about their good time paying little to no attention to the mess building beside them. The girls took their antics to the next level – with two of them climbing halfway onto the table to get their point across. Only after I gave a sharp look in the direction of the fracas did one of the mothers finally get up and restore order.

As a child, I recall being strategically placed between two adults when dinning out to prevent this very type of behavior from ever getting started. Since when did restaurants become public parks or worse yet, day care centers? Since when is it ok to ask other members of the general public, who are paying hard-earned dollars for ambiance, to bear the burden of another’s misguided children? While the girls’ unruliness was indeed unremarkable, to say the least, the behavior of their mothers was even more abominable – definitely well short of Model Citizenship.

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