Reply To: Going off the Derech

EzratHashem-It’s hard not to care about what the community thinks, everyone tries to keep their kids away from these street boys, and now my son has become one of them! But I accept your point that we have to make him the priority, bc it would only validate his fears that we don’t care about him, if I was more worried about the neighbors.. I don’t know what else he might want, other than a computer, and it may be true that he has access to internet outside the house. Which is another reason I should try to keep him home

Soliek-you make a lot of good points, so it sounds like I still don’t have any (good) leverage with him. I’d have to reason with him during a good moment and try to get him to agree with complying with house rules on his own. At this point, the house rules for him are to speak to his parents respectfully,as we speak to him, and to get rid of (or perhaps seriously reduce) his anger. I told him that as a parent, I am obligated to know where all my children are, who they are with and when they will be home. To some extent, he is trying to comply.

Thank you for your compliments. I hope I live up to your words..