Empowering Girls: Tanning

Mom can I tan?

Wait, what? What do you mean by tan?

Tan. Lay out in the sun to make my skin darker.

You’re 6!

So? Stephanie and her sisters do it.

(Damn, older cheerleader sisters,) I think to myself.

Look. At. My. Face. Right. Now. Do you see those brown spots on my forehead and those speckles on my cheeks? That is sun damage. Laying out will ruin your beautiful skin, which is the perfect color as it is. Laying out also causes cancer. You can die from cancer.

So, no?

So, yes. You can lay out in the sun to relax by the pool, but you better have broad spectrum SPF 50 sunscreen on when you do it.

Tanning is one of my biggest regrets as I have spent far too much time and money trying to correct and hide the melasma, brown spots, on my face that resulted.

Is there a parenting phenomenon where our deepest and biggest regrets surface again in our children? Would that be Parenting Karma or God presenting an opportunity to us to resolve our past or correct our mistakes? And is this phenomenon on fast forward?

Anyone else notice this type of phenomenon?

Read more about melasma and sun damage here: Can a Leapord Change Her Spots?