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• Tuesday, May 23, 2006 01:51 PM

  Now wait a second

  children did not thrive and prosper and develop and mature all that well or for all that long simply because mom strapped baby on to go work the fields

  No, going to work with mom didn't do all that for them, but it didn't do them any harm either, unless mom worked in a coal mine or something. They got hurt by the lack of antibiotics, vaccinations, decent food, education, etc., as I'm sure you're aware.

  I think what people are getting at is that most babies (though there are certainly exceptions) can get plenty of stimulation by just being toted about in such a manner that they are free to look at and listen to whatever is happening around them. They don't need an adult pushing things around for them, telling them what to pay attention to, and basically making them the center of the goings-on. They need to feel included, but all this catering to them seems to get a lot of little ones I know more anxious than if they were just allowed to take it all in on their own. Hard to be laid back when people are cramming stuff at you all the time.

  Really, I wouldn't mind kids in the office, as long as the policy was managed well. My worry is that some companies, especially larger ones, would try to create a one-size-fits-all program, and it would be too difficult to deal with those that didn't fit. It would take an awfully graceful and sensitive manager to handle some of the problems that would surely arise. But hey, it does anyway.

  If they start screaming, I'll stuff my iPod in my ears and keep working, just like I do when the adults around me start in. ;-)

  —Rachel Avery Read Rachel Avery's other letters
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