Respecting my daughter’s ’space’
Filed under: Lifestyle, Moms, Computers, Internet, Monitoring your kids
A few weeks ago, my adult daughter Christy came over for a visit and used my computer to check her email. After she left, I realized she had left her MySpace page up on the screen. I knew she had a MySpace page, I had just never seen it. It's a private page and I am not a 'friend.' But there it was.As I sat looking at it, I debated whether or not to have a look around. Here was an opportunity to explore a part of her life that I know very little about - her social life. Who is she talking to and what are they talking about? The urge to peer into that window that she left open on my computer was very strong.
When she was younger, she didn't keep a diary. If she had, I am not sure what I would have done. I probably would have read it. She was what you would call a 'troubled teen' and knowing her secret thoughts might have given me some insight into how I could help her through that difficult period in her life. But she's an adult now and seems to have a pretty good handle on things. My desire to read her MySpace page was nothing more than curiosity.
I closed the window. As much as I want to know what is going on in her head, she has a right to her privacy and I have no right to take advantage of her carelessness in leaving her diary open. I do wonder what other parents would have done in that situation. Would you have been tempted as I was? Would you have given in to that temptation?Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments