Why does it seem like schools have more rights, than the parents have?

Disclaimer: This might sound a little ranty, so I apologize for this unusual style up front. But today really got me thinking...

Today, my son woke up with a stuffy nose and a sore throat, like hundreds of other children in schools all across the country... But, thankfully, our kindergarten is only 2.5 hours long, so I sent him in -due to no other major symptoms.

We stood out in front of the same glass doors that I've faced countless times before. The 15 degree temperatures pressed firmly against our skins, as we shivered under the scattered clouded sky... My daughter was bouncing around, talking with her friends, while my son tightly clung to me... He kept saying he didn't feel well, but I reassured him that it was only 2.5 hrs of school and a stuffy nose isn't something major -and he'll probably continue to have it for another week.

Then, when the teacher unlocked the doors, he broke down crying, begging me to take him home.

He just wanted to snuggle up and stay close to me because, he didn't feel well - a perfectly reasonable explanation for a 5 year old child.

But at this point, the principal and guidance counselor were involved, trying to get him to come inside.
*Too many cooks in the kitchen.

The principle even stated, "you can't stay home with only a stuffy nose." And I was told, I had to take him in to see the school nurse, to prove his sickness.

This is where the story turns...

Our state passed a law that you're only allowed 10 EXCUSED days, then the proceeding days MUST have a doctor's excuse, or they will start the truancy court process (yes, our state has their own truancy court). 

10 days, out of 180 school days...

Let that sink in.

...Even though adults get a minimum of 2 weeks vacation, plus personal days and sick days...

*This whole thing started because of this law. If our Governor didn't pass it, I wouldn't have questioned my instinct from the start and I would have trusted his ability to exam himself and kept him home. I understand the logic behind the passing of this law, because of the parents who do not send their kids to school or who take them in late all the time. But, the new law isn't going to stop them. Instead, it's only going to affect the parents like me, who want to follow the rules, but do right by their children at the same time. And in turn, this law is creating parents who send their kids to school, when they should be home resting. Or, parents who send their children back to school quicker than they should and in turn, are spreading more diseases.

So, this is what gets me heated... This is MY child, why do I need prove anything? 

Aren't I the parent?

Look, my children are just starting off in school, so I blame all the parents the prior years ahead of me, who allowed this to happen.

The parents who allowed the state to dictate your rights to your own child(ren).

Stand up for our families!
Stand up for our rights as parents!
And, stand up for our children's rights as people!

Even if my son wasn't sick and just wanted to take the day off to relax, he should be able to, without me having to prove anything...

Adults do it all the time at work.

It's a sad reality in this country that we don't have much rights to our own children, until they're adults - that includes medical too.

And if you don't see it, you're not looking clear enough. 

Districts feel, as soon as the children pass that threshold, they're now state property. And teachers think they are allowed to treat the students how they want -Instilling their beliefs, their morals, and their punishments... The school believes they are allowed to tell your children when they're allowed to go to the bathroom, when they're allowed to speak, and when they're allowed to eat.

But it doesn't work that way....

*I realize it completely does work that way in schools... But it shouldn't. 

And parents allowed it to happen...

Adults are just conditioned to separate from their children and place them in the care of strangers. Parents trust these people as extensions of their families... That has become the norm. And anyone who differs from that norm, they're the strange ones - or the ones who need to change.

But contrary to popular belief, there was once a time when a mother stayed home, looked after her children, and those children were overly attached to their families. They didn't separate easily and they hid behind their parents, when strangers talked to them.

This was once the norm.

Now, infants as young as six weeks, are off to daycare, spending the majority of their time around a bunch of strangers. And when they get sick, they're forced to deal with the uncomfortable feelings around people other than their parents, because understandably, guardians can't just leave work for every little sniffle...

So, by the time school starts, these children are conditioned. They're robotic, because they understand the system...

But, my children do not. My children aren't around anyone other than me. They don't do sleepovers, spend weekends away with a family member, or even a few hours with someone else.

I'm their constant.
Their rock.
Their home base, to feel safe and secure.

And somewhere along the way, that has become a bad thing... It became a hassle to have a child not conform and not blindly trust a stranger.

The way the staff acted today, was not out of concern, but merely with little patience. Almost like, they were shocked that when they snapped their fingers, my child didn't get hypnotized and jump right up and follow them inside - (imagine pavlov's theory).

However, he clung to me, instead of them...

So, after 20 minutes in the nurse's office, I took him home. 

He was still crying...

It was that moment, which separates me from the majority of other parents.

Most parents would have left him there, crying, because they would think that by taking him home, they would create a pattern.

But with me, I took him home because I wanted to show him that mommy will always be there for him -to listen to him, to understand him, and trust him. I wanted to validate him as a person and show him that he has rights to his own life and body.

That nobody owns him.

And, if he was having an "off" day and just didn't feel well, that is perfectly fine. We all do... And not feeling well is different for everyone and should be the parent's judgement call -not the state's.

So, he'll go tomorrow and I'll join him and his class with making gingerbread houses for their craft.

And, he'll get his do-over. 

Or, if not, and this was the early onset of a virus, then I'll trust in him to determine that, not the school...