Recently there was a letter to the editor that gave a reader’s opinion about working mothers. And that opinion was that most working moms don’t teach their children the things that they should and that those things should be taught in school.

As a single working mother I just can’t agree with this letter. Let me start by saying I’ve been on both sides of the fence. While my husband was a medical student, resident and new physician there was no question that I had to work. We flat out needed the income. After my husband’s practice starting providing us with a good income I worked both full-time and part-time jobs. Not just so we could “have the finer things in life” as the reader stated, but because I was licensed professional who enjoyed working and contributing to the income of our family.

Eight years ago when my husband passed away I was very thankful my nursing license had not been allowed to sit on a shelf and expire as it became a necessity for me to work. Have my children suffered for it? I don’t think so. I’ve made sure that jobs I took were ones that allowed me to be where I needed to be for them and their activities. Have I come home tired, put my feet up and said “I’m not cooking tonight so everyone is eating leftovers or a sandwich?” Yes, I have. Did it ruin my children that they ate in the living room that night watching television instead of sitting around the table? No, I don’t think so. Probably because they respected the fact that I worked and was tired and probably because I sat in the living room with and we laughed at some silly show or talked about everyone’s day.

It was expressed in the letter that certain things need to be taught in the schools because they weren’t being taught by mothers at home. The most interesting thing about this statement to me is that at least 90 percent of the educators I know are women and I cannot even guess how many of them are parents. So it’s OK for working mothers to be at the schools teaching other working mothers’ children, but it isn’t OK for other mothers who might want to work to be doing so? Some of the teachers I know that work do so because they have desire to help educate children, and whether or not they “have” to work how can you fault that in this day and time?

Parenting isn’t about whether or not you work outside the home. Parenting is about raising your children and doing right by them. This means spending time with them whenever you can, making sure they have proper social skills, making sure they do their homework and are staying on track in their school work, feeding them healthy meals and attending as many of their activities as possible.

As far as deciding children aren’t mature enough upon graduating from high school to attend a four- year college, who should decide that? A blanket decision from the government, absolutely not! That is a decision to made by parents and students together based on the maturity of the student, the grades of the student and the finances of the parents. My oldest two went straight from high school to a four-year college. One has recently finished her master’s degree and gotten married. The second one is currently a senior at a four year college. Are they the smartest and most mature children to ever leave Adams County? Nope. Are they hard workers who were determined to do their best and go to college? Yes, they are.

I’ve said this for years and I will stand by this, be careful about wanting to have the government make rules about raising your children. It’s one thing to say it takes a village to raise your children, it’s another to not be allowed to decide who you want in your village to help with raising them. My village consists of myself, grandparents, teachers, and lots of good friends who I think are a positive influence on my children. It’s still a village, but it’s my village.

Christina Hall writes a weekly column for The Democrat. She can be reached at christina.hall@natchezdemocrat.com.