Adolescent Power Plays

Most children
Seem to be
Born with
An innate ability
To test the limits
Of their parents
Endurance.
They constantly
Probe to see
What they can
Get away with,
And in the process
They discover
Their parent's
Strong points,
As well as
Their weak points.
For instance,
A common occurrence
Is when a baby
Discovers a particular
Ear piercing scream
That obviously agitates
Its parents.
The baby will then
Use it with
Reckless abandon
Until made to stop
By one of the parents,
Then the other parent
Will be singled out
As the focus
For their vocal performance,
Especially if that parent
Doesn't also puts a stop to it.
The baby quickly learns
When and where
Discipline will be applied,
But equally important
When and where
It won't be as well.
A child may sense
That the parents
Are more restrained
When guests are present,
Or when they are
Out shopping,
And may choose
That opportune moment
To run the show.
The child quickly learns
How to get
What it wants,
And when a parent
Caves in to bad behavior,
They unconsciously
Reinforce the behavior
That annoys them the most.
Sometimes the children
Are well behaved
Around strangers,
But that may be because
They don't yet know
The stranger's limits.
I have seen numerous times
Where the child
Is clearly in control
And runs the household,
For the parents have failed
To set viable limits
To what is, and isn't acceptable.
By the time the child
Enters school, he or she
Is adept at sizing up adults,
And discovering what
He or she can get away with.
A child can easily spot
The new teacher's weaknesses
And will run wild unless
Limits are set immediately.
After all, the kids are
Used to pushing around
Their parents,
So why should any
Other adult be different?