I was facilitating a parenting group several years ago and one of the parents asked the group if being “a good kid” meant being a compliant kid. Good question.
Good kids follow the rules. Good kids control their emotions. Good girls – in particular – are expected to be subdued and deferential.
Yesterday HH and I finally saw Wonder Woman and let’s just say that Diana, Princess of the Amazon was not always a rule keeper. Both as a child and as a young woman, she defied requests/commands/ultimata to refrain from saving the world. People who loved her wanted to keep her safe. But her inherent kick-assery made compliance unlikely.
Nevertheless, Diana was the best of the Good Girls. She knew when to fight. She knew when to empathize. She believed in grace.
“I don’t believe you get what you deserve. You get what you believe and I believe in love.”
Good girls might indeed be compliant, but the best ones I know demand respect for themselves and for others. They are kind. They are brave. They believe that love changes the world.
Image of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman (2017)
A Church for Starving Artists 