Before you can drive a car by yourself, you need to pass both a written and a road test. To open a restaurant and serve food, you must be licensed and then you’re monitored to make sure you maintain certain health standards.  There are license requirements for hundreds of other things in our lives, too.

How is it, then, that human beings can randomly become parents with no guidelines whatsoever?  Even animal shelters and most private kennels screen adoptive pet parents. Think about it.  Raising a child is probably the toughest job in the world, and carries the most responsibility. Getting pregnant is the easy part, at least for the majority. What follows is pretty much a learn-as-you-go project.  Most folks handle it reasonably well and do the best they can.

Then there are those who have no intention of making any changes in their lives because of a youngster.  We think of this often when we see or read about a child being mistreated, even killed, because they inconvenienced an adult.  We’re constantly bombarded by stories of youngsters beaten simply because they cried, treated like slaves in their homes, locked away for days in a bedroom, punished by not being fed, or made to suffer in hundreds of ways.

Some mothers can’t wait to get rid of a newborn, and abandon them as quickly as possible. Just this past week, an infant still wrapped in a hospital blanket was found in a crevice beside a walking path, covered with debris to hide it. Thank goodness passersby heard its cries and rescued it.  A couple of weeks ago, a newborn was found in a Christmas manger display, and while it was sad, the mother did what she thought was best for the baby and escaped punishment herself by leaving the infant in a public place, such as a hospital, police station, orphanage, or the like. Some new mothers realize even before they give birth that they are in no position to care for or financially support an infant, and sometimes even if they are, they just plain don’t want it.

In the long run, some abandoned infants probably stand a much better chance in life than they would with a mother who may not want them.   We’ve probably all heard stories of these children. We remember learning years ago that a mother who liked to spend her evenings drinking and socializing at a local bar didn’t let the lack of a babysitter cramp her style. She simply brought the baby along and left it in the car in the parking lot, checking on him/her on occasion. In today’s world, especially in small towns, these types of incidences are not as commonplace as they were thirty or forty years ago when folks usually didn’t interfere in other people’s business. Today, concerned citizens speak up when they see things like this happening.

Parenting isn’t for everyone. It’s hard enough to handle even when you welcome a newborn into your life with open arms. It’s unfortunate that so many babies who enter this world are unwanted from Day One, and sometimes never experience the true love of a parent or other close family member.

Those about to become parents should be required to take a Parenting 101 class, and it shouldn’t end there. Thank goodness more and more classes, books, and group sessions are available today to help parents cope with their children as they grow from infancy through the teen years. Most parents welcome advice and a chance to discuss parenthood with others. There’s no doubt about it, it’s an ongoing learning process.