The world we live in is constantly changing and as parents it can be challenging to know what our children are facing and trying to deal with on an everyday basis. The way we were raised may have been good for the time that we lived in, but now is a different age and era with a whole new set of issues, ideas and challenges. Unfortunately our children are facing these challenges everyday and they may not have the words or the courage to tell us what is going on in their minds and hearts.
This may not be the lists that ends all lists, but I believe it gets to the root of many of the issues that our children are having to deal with. So what are the trends that our children are dealing with? Not in any particular order I have placed these. You may think your child is not dealing with some of them. That may be true and then again maybe not. As you consider each of these and look at the references and further reading I encourage you to stay close to your child, talk to them without judging, build a community around them, help them feel like they belong to something that is bigger than them.
