We’ve all see these new trends: “Trash the dress, block, gala, school, set, movie, brand, rental, boss, lies and others” and then there is the ever popular trend with new parents of the face plant of a one year old into a very expensive birthday cake while wearing a brand new expensive outfit and a paid photo shoot to boot! Are these disturbing trends, harmless fads, or human beings seeking sick attention?
These new and ever more daring acts to be different, to draw attention to ones self, to create shock , a WOW factor and to be in front of everyone else are not a sign of new trends in my opinion. These are signs of clear disintegration of disrespect and disregard for the importance of the day, the sacrifice in time and money and tradition of the event and the person or person who are being celebrated.
When a person is seeking fame and notoriety, they also exhibit a streak of rebellion and a lack of self preservation. They are willing to put themselves in harms way. Let’s take a look at the “Trash the Dress” trend. The spouse must not cherish his beautiful new bride if he is willing to risk her life and their marriage by setting her on fire! Do these couples stop to think about death, disfigurement and or charges of …..? What about the parents of the couple what about their responsibility ?
On the topic the birthday cake face planting and destruction of the cake and the happy 1st birthday party…What message and lesson is being sent and teaching are you as a parent giving? Who is screaming and crying? Who is appalled? No one comes alone to these events. The children who are in tow with their parents and think they are coming to a birthday party with balloons and party hats arrive to screaming chaos and are clearly confused by the events they are witnessing. Birthday parties are not about mayhem and destruction, messes, drama and tears.
We are all role models no matter what our age. We are constantly teaching to those who are observing us. We have guests in our homes at our parties, around our tables at holidays, at celebrations such as weddings, birthday parties, anniversaries, funerals, or just dinner out with friends.
So it’s your precious daughter’s 1st birthday, you dress her up and then encourage her to smash her face into the birthday cake, getting it up her nose into her eyes, cake into her fine delicate hair, ruin her pretty birthday dress, make a huge mess in your nice home, and now she is screaming and crying. You must leave the guests, and the mess to take care of your daughter and clean her up and most likely she will be resistant to return to her own party. You not only have a home full of guests with their mouths wide open at the spectacle, but a mess to clean up down stairs and a screaming toddler on your hands…..FAST FORWARD twenty plus years…….to her wedding day and you’ve spent a lifetime planning, saving and dreaming of this day for your precious daughter. You’ve been dress shopping and to all the fittings, and the day is finally here. Everyone is in place at the venue, Your daughter appears and everyone stands and turns, then the oohh’s and ahhh’s as she walks down the aisle on her father’s arm and the wonderful wedding photos are taken and now suddenly …..it’s time to trash the DRESS!!!!! 
(the dress that cost you $10,000!) You watch as your son-in-law sets your daughter on fire for the photos, guests run screaming from the wedding! What a wonderful finale for your daughter’s wedding! The image is forever emblazoned in the minds of your guests as the firetrucks and police pull up.
This all comes full circle to the questions I continue to ask and I now ask you to ponder.
What do you really believe about “traditions?”
What do you really believe about “honor? ”
What do you really believe about “respect?”
What do you really believe about “once in a lifetime events? ”
What do you believe about “role modeling? ”
What do you believe about “your role as a parent?”
Where do your beliefs come from anyway?
If you’ve decided your beliefs no longer serve you (i.e. a wedding dress is precious, sacred, worth something and now you can trash it),
What changed?
These are all the ways society and our nation has changed, is changing and how these changes affect you, your children and our nation. I would love to know what you think.
