One of the things my kinder-babies said that had me take a moment to consider what their lives at home must be like:
Me, on authority figures in our community: Police Officers are authority figures in our community. Who knows what police officers do?
My thinking: They keep us safe and protect us. They catch bad guys, put them in jail. You know, that sort of thing.
Instead, this is what I got:
One child: Police put you in jail.
Second child: That's right. If you stay out after dark, they take you away.
Third child: To jail. If you are bad, you go to jail.
Second child to Third child: Right. So if you are out late, that is bad and they come put you in jail.
Fourth child: Yea. They take you to jail.
Me: Is that all they do? Put you in jail for being bad?
My thinking: They put bad people in jail. If you break the law, you can be arrested, pulled over for speeding, etc. They protect you from bad people, etc.
First child: Yes.
Me: What about protecting us? Do they protect us?
Fifth child (giving me a serious look): No, Mrs. Miller, that is a SOLDIER'S job.
Me: I stand corrected. You are right. It IS a soldier's job to protect us. It is ALSO the job of the police to protect us from...
Third child: Bad guys?
Me: Yes. They make sure we follow the law and are safe.
Second child: Hmm. I think maybe you are right, but mostly they take you to jail.
... What could I say here? He is agreeing with me and if I ask about community leaders, such as: Who is your leader at church? or Who is in charge at home? and Who is in charge at school? They answer rightly. The Priest/Paster/whoever. Mom/Dad/Big Sibling/Grandparent. Principal/Teacher/Assistant Principals. And so on.
Police, apparently... their experiences are beyond what mine have ever been. I figure one of them saw something happen at night - someone was arrested and taken to jail or the station - and they assumed it was because they were out after dark. Clearly some parent knows when it is dark, it's not safe to let a Kindergartner be outside.
