Marshmallow

Yup that is right we are talking about marshmallows today.  Why you ask?  Our educational system is so messed up that they are now teaching pychobabble at your local schools. I am probably opening a can of worms here, but quite frankly, I don’t care.  My 8^th grader has a “health” assignment (and I use the term health loosely because in my opinion this is our society trying to shape our young minds into a collective and acceptable thinking pattern.) Any way back to the “assignment”, the task is to put a marshmallow on a table (it represents drugs) and stare at it.  You got it “STARE” at it.  And then will yourself not to eat it.  Ok, I digress, SERIOUSLY a MARSHMALLOW, is that really what you people came up with?  I could easily walk away from a marshmallow.  Shoot I could throw it in the trash and be fine with it, no guilt and absolutely no draw.  How about a bowl of cheese puffs or other yummy chips, or a bowl full of your favorite candy, then stare at THAT.  Try to just eat one and then will yourself not to eat another for 15 minutes, an hour, the remainder of the day.  I can’t think of a single friend that would flip for a marshmallow (that is probably why they are my friend).  So this is supposed to represent the draw of drugs, alcohol and smoking?  Really, what are these people taking, drinking, and smoking?  Then the next part of the assignment is to get a friend to eat the marshmallow.  Say WHAT?  Are you kidding me?  “Psst, hey man it is a really good marshmallow man.”  “It is the pure stuff you know.”  I thought we were supposed to be teaching our kids how to NOT succumb to peer pressure, not engage in it.  I don’t know about you, but getting peer pressure to work wasn’t a problem in my day.  Resisting peer pressure, now that is a COMPLETELY different story.  “Hey, everyone is eating marshmallows man”.  Now that I think about it though, maybe talking someone into a marshmallow may prove to be a fairly daunting task.  “Hey, that stuff is NASTY, no way!”  I am telling you parents out there who have kids from about 5^th grade an above, READ what the kids are doing in “health” class.  It will make you laugh, cry and get downright frustrated.  “So Billy is getting an “F” in arithmetic, but he wrote this touching poem about the horrors of eating marshmallows”.  I am sorry people but LIFE does NOT give you an A for trying.  It gives you an A for excellence.  And how can one be excellent if they are wasting their time staring down a marshmallow on their dining room table?