The Switch and the Light Switch
This article is for parents of young children. One of my children, who will remain unnamed, was what we often refer to as a strong-willed child. When this child learned to crawl he developed an attraction to electrical receptacles, which were on his eye-level as he crawled around our home. Knowing the danger of these shiny beige devices, we wanted to instill a fear of them in this little man. The danger of electrical receptacles was engrained in my wife’s mind due to the fact that her childhood best friend had deforming scars around her mouth due to biting into an electrical cord. Therefore, as the head of the house, I took it on myself to instill the proper respect, even fear, of electric receptacles in this strong-willed child.
Thus began the battle of the “switches”, with the double meaning of the word “switch” referencing the close association of a “switch” with the electrical receptacle and the association of a “switch” with corporal punishment. I need to preface this by saying that we had, in fact, outfitted all of the receptacles in our house with the little plug-in plastic devices that were designed to keep children from self-harm when exploring receptacles. However, when visiting the homes of other people, I knew there would be receptacles that were not covered. This motivated me to teach this strong-willed child that electrical receptacles were off limits.
When freed to crawl around the house, this child would head straight for the closest receptacle. My first reaction was simply to pick him up, explain that there was danger in that device, and place him somewhere else in the room. He would immediately crawl back to the said attraction. The next level of keeping him safe, and away from the receptacles, was to not only pick him up and take him to another spot, but to add some other attraction that would divert his attention…a book, a toy, etc.
There was no dissuading this child from exploring the focus of his attention. Being well aware of the Biblical principle stated with the phrase, “spare the rod, spoil the child”, my next approach was to apply just a bit of corporal punishment, by slapping his hand and telling him that this device was dangerous. Before proceeding with that line of reasoning, I’ll share a short analysis of that proverb by my new friend, AI. “ ‘Spare the rod, spoil the child’ is a proverb suggesting that withholding discipline from a child leads to a spoiled, ill-behaved adult. While often associated with Proverbs 13:24, which urges diligent discipline from loved ones, the exact phrase originates from a 17th century (satirical) poem by Samual Butler. The original “rod” referred to a shepherd’s staff used for guidance and protection, implying that loving discipline-not necessarily physical punishment-is crucial for a child’s proper upbringing.”
Now, back to the problem facing me. I learned that lightly slapping this strong-willed child’s hand worked more as a motivational device than it did to dissuade him. So, the slaps grew heavier. Evidently, he did not have a normal reaction to pain. Also, removing him from the presence of his focused attention meant taking him to another room. However, much to his delight, I’m sure, there were electrical receptacles in every room. It did not take long for me to realize that, in order to apply corporal punishment with enough force to dissuade this child from any interest in electrical receptacles, I would likely be in the realm of child abuse. Having been raised by a father who, to my memory, never used corporal punishment (Mom took care of that chore), I was not inclined to use heavier corporal punishment.
In truth, I do not recall how this issue was finally resolved. However, I have often wondered how my slapping his hand might have shaped his little mind. I seriously doubt that he could have understood the danger that this shiny ivory device, with two little eyes, contained. I even toyed with the idea of allowing him to explore the electrical receptacles until he discovered the danger. Of course, I never allowed him that much time in close contact with the receptacles. I am confident of this, however. Picking him up, hugging him, talking to him, no matter how many times I might have needed to repeat that process, would have been a much better method than any corporal “punishment”. This is not a denouncement of “corporal punishment”. It is simply a re-affirmation of loving communication.
-John Keller