Kids are hilarious. They will say what they think and do what grownups consider socially awkward. One little boy that had a habit of staring at adults inspired me to draw this “Being Watched Cartoon.”
Privacy is an issue that keeps coming up thanks to the Internet, Facebook, Apple, and Google. People fret because they’re concerned someone out there knows way too much about what brand of bread you buy or how often you do (or don’t) brush your teeth.
Privacy Please!
In some ways, a lack of privacy can be good. It can help you when you have publicly declared you are going to lose weight and a mountain-sized hot fudge sundae calls your name. It encourages accountability when you know you shouldn’t be doing such and such and you realize it’s a bad idea when little eyes are watching.
A lack of privacy can be good to knock the hypocrisy right out of you. It can be especially good to know the next generation is watching you and are taking notes. Don’t do in the dark what you wouldn’t do in the day!
That said, we can feel quite uncomfortable when someone stares us down. If the perpetrator is a small child, we may wonder what is going to come next when they open their mouth. Are they going to make a comment about body hair? Maybe it’s our coffee breath. Heaven knows what observations will come out of the little observer!
Maybe you remind them of a celebrity or TV character. Or perhaps we resemble their crazy Uncle Carl. The possibilities are endless!
So the next time, one child is playing staredown with you in church, distract yourself by remembering this “Being Watched Cartoon.”
I drew this for the February 2012 CHOGNews.
Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog on October 6, 2015. I revamped and updated it for timeliness and comprehensiveness.
