I CAN'T contain my joy that the mayor has decided to continue disallowing minors or children below 15 years old to enter malls, even if accompanied by parents.
Call me old-fashioned but I really don’t see any reason why minors should be malling, at this time or at any time, for that matter—with or without their parents.
Malls are commercial spaces created to boost retail sales by providing a venue for people to entertain themselves in different ways in just one place. But let’s face it, malls lure consumers in to leave their money behind.
Some say they go to the mall to window-shop. But what is the point of going to the mall if you are not there to buy something? Window-shopping leads to “wanting” and then “buying” stuff you don’t need. If you don’t want to shop, don’t go to the mall.
If you were an alcoholic who “truly” wants to stop drinking, why drop by the bar just to look at the liquor?
Take it from me—I’m a “recovered” shopaholic. I don’t go to the mall without a purpose. If I look, it’s still with purpose like when I’m looking for a gift.
No good thing comes out of malling—especially for minors. Malling only creates a need to buy stuff, unnecessary but coveted.
Besides, why do you want to raise your kids on the culture of malling? They will grow up with the culture of overpriced coffee and pastries. Once in a while, we deserve a treat but the rest of the time, why not drink coffee at home—it’s not only cheaper, it’s also safer. And it’s probably best to cut down on the pastries, anyway.
Sure, I buy overpriced coffee too because at 95, it is my dear father’s only luxury. I buy specialty bread too. These are my father’s only two requests.
But minors, I feel, should learn to live more ascetic lives. It’s better for them to grow up understanding the value of money, hard work and sacrifice.
I know that as parents, we want to give our children everything we never had. But know that you don’t love your children less when you don’t accede to all their desires. In fact, one day, they will look back and realize that it is because you loved them more that you said “no” so many times.
I know that I am forever grateful to my mother for not allowing us to drink softdrinks, growing up. You don’t know how we envied other kids.
There were no malls when I was a child but restaurants already existed. We never ate out. I don’t feel, in any way, deprived. I don’t feel I missed out on anything. And I don’t feel like I grew up ignorant.
If we lift the mall ban on minors now, it’s almost certain, families will converge in malls to shop and eat once more—a scenario we wish to avoid at this time.
My sincerest apologies to all my friends in the business sector. But the ban of minors in our malls will be the best gift we can give our children this Christmas.