Baby Toys & Raising Boys
“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, think, reason like a child; when I became a man, I put away childish things.” – 1 Corinthians 13:11
One morning as I prepared my 7 year old son’s breakfast, I noticed that he was still eating off of the same Toy Story plate and bowl that my wife and I purchased for him when he was 4 years old. This was an epiphany for me because lately I have been stressing to my son the importance for him to stop talking like a baby. My wife and daughter have always “babied” my son but I never saw my role in the babying process until this morning. So I decided to write this blog not only for mothers that mentally breast feed their sons after the age of 5, but also fathers like myself who’ve always desired a son, and when God finally gave us one, we guarded him from “danger”, instead of guiding him through it.
“When the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.” – Genesis 21:8
I have been mentoring boys and young men since 2001 and I’ve seen firsthand the negative effects of 84 month old boys not being weaned from their mother’s breasts. Historically is Israel and Africa, baby boys were weaned from their mother’s breast at the age of two years old. This was a very significant stage for the father because he now could take his son from his wife’s bosom and train him up in the way of LORD. But unfortunately due to over 81% of African American homes being parented by single females, this weaning process takes over a decade to begin, if at all. To the other extreme, I’ve noticed homes with both father and mother, in which the father is almost always met with resistance from the mother when he tries to wean and train his son like a male.
After I disposed of my son’s Toy Story plate and bowl, I walked into his room. As I surveyed his toys, I noticed that 40% of them were not age appropriate. I then remembered last Christmas morning when I noticed that almost half of his gifts lacked the detail of the toys for someone his age. When I looked at the bottom corner of each of the boxes, it clearly read, “Ages 2 to 5”. It was very difficult for me to tell my beloved son that he could not open and play with any of the “baby toys”, but it was finally time to take a stand. He was saddened at first, but after our conversation he understood why it was necessary. Again, this is my fault, I allowed my son to be babied too long because I desired a son for so long. My actions or lack thereof, hindered my son’s development into manhood.
Conclusion: I think it’s safe to say that Abraham longed for a son more than I did, yet he did not allow that deep desire to compromise God’s will for his family. When God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, he did not consult with his wife Sarah or let his emotions deter him. Instead he responded to God’s will with bold action rooted in faith, and his entire lineage was blessed! As men of God, it is crucial that we strive for this type of faith when it comes to training up our boys. If we do not stop babying them, the prison industrial complex will continue enslaving them.
Shalom & Ahab,
Shärath Jason Wilson
S.W.A.G. (Students With Awareness & Goals) Is Back In Full Effect!
𝘚.𝘞.𝘈.𝘎. (𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 & 𝘎𝘰𝘢𝘭𝘴) 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵! 🎉 S.W.A.G. is our holistic prevention program offered primarily to middle school students, but available to high school students as well. The aim is to equip and empower kids to make healthy life choices…
Read More
Media Can Have a HUGE Influence On Teenagers
Parents, did you know this…? 🤔𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘺. Media can have a 𝘏𝘜𝘎𝘌 influence on teenagers whether it’s directly or indirectly. For example, have you…
Read More
Activities to Get Your Kids/Teens Out of the House and Playing Outside
Last month, we touched on some of our favorite books for parents, as well as what foods to stay away from for our kids. So in honor of it being the first week of spring, we want to talk about…𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐬/𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭…
Read More
Trauma-Informed Parent Training
Wellness Wednesdays – Trauma-Informed Parent Training |
Read More
The Cave Podcast
Hey parents! 👋 Our CEO and founder @mrjasonwilson and some of his boys from @Cave313 started a Podcast! It’s called The Cave Podcast. On this episode, they talk about the danger of boys deflecting discipline and manipulating their mothers. Maybe we (and our kids) do…
Read More
Trauma Informed Parenting
Join us 𝘓𝘐𝘝𝘌 this Wednesday for #WellnessWednesday! 🌱 This week, we’ll be addressing 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐦𝐚 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 with Dr. Shantalea Johns, Ed.D., LMSW. These topics will include and go over: 🔹𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥’𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥…
Read More
NeighborHUB Program
The Yunion is 𝘚𝘖 excited that the Detroit Regional Chamber and General Motors announced their fourth cohort of awardees for the NeighborHUB grant program! From the program’s largest-ever applicant pool, we are honored to be an awardee. 🎉 The 𝐍𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐇𝐔𝐁 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 is an annual,…
Read More
What Online Content is Appropriate for Your Teens
Parents, did you know…? 🤔 𝟿𝟻% 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮; 𝟹𝟿% 𝘥𝘰 𝘴𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺. Since many teenagers like using social media websites, online message boards, internet chat rooms, and instant messaging…
Read More
Happy International Women’s Day
In honor of #internationalwomensday we wanted to give a shout out to all the women who are a part of the Yunion! 💙 Nicole Wilson has served as the Yunion’s Executive Director since the beginning, has more than 17 years of management experience, 𝘈𝘕𝘋…
Read More
Understanding & Engaging Gen Z
Calling all parents! 👋 Join us this Wednesday 𝘖𝘕𝘓𝘠 for a free live webinar on 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 & 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐞𝐧 𝐙 with Quan Neloms! This discussion with be available via Zoom and Facebook Live, 6:30-7:30 EST. We will cover all topics…
Read More
Nothing Beats In-Person Training
@cave313 Is so glad to be back in person training—there’s nothing like it! #TeachTrainTransform
Read More
Self-esteem
𝘚𝘦𝘭𝘧-𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴. Positive self-esteem for teens is so important! It allows them to try new things, take healthy risks, and solve problems. Their desire to learn opens the door to creating healthy habits, and sets them up for…
Read More
Be What You Didn’t See
Our CEO and Founder @mrjasonowilson is truly honored to be selected as one of @GymShark’s heroes for #BlackHistoryMonth! ✊🏾❤️ He talks about the Cave of Adullam, his journey, and so much more! “𝘉𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦!” Show him some love…
Read More
Wellness Wednesday!
Happy #WellnessWednesday! 🌱 Did you know that by paying close attention to what your children eat, you can improve their mood, memory, and attention span at home 𝘈𝘕𝘋 at school? There’s a clear relationship between food and your state of mind. When you…
Read More
3 Parenting Books
3 Parenting books our Program Director Mr. Ron is reading. 📚 1️⃣ 𝐑𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐊𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 – Redefine Success for You and Your Child by Dr. Tim Kimmel 2️⃣ 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐊𝐢𝐝𝐬 – How to Balance Screen Time, and Why it Matters…
Read More
What Age Do You Think Their Brain Has Fully Developed?
Parents, I know you don’t understand why your teenager occasionally behaves impulsively, irrationally, or recklessly. At times, it seems like they don’t think things through or fully consider the consequences of their actions.🚫 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭! Studies have shown that the…
Read MoreBlog Categories
SEARCH THIS BLOG: