When President Obama called for Dr. Martin Luther King's holiday to be a "national day of service" or when he endorsed January as National Mentoring Month, he didn't tell us how to squeeze 25 hours out of a 24 hour day? When Michelle Obama highlighted mentoring at risk youth as the nexus of these emphases, she didn't tell us how to maintain a rested complexion with less than 8 hours sleep every night.
Most of us would agree the crises facing American youth, such as juvenile crime, substance abuse, high school dropout rates and an epidemic of childhood obesity require the time honored intervention of caring adults as mentors. We just may not be sure there is enough of us to go around.
Human beings are social. Daily interaction with each other is a kind of socialization and mentoring. We may argue that using our spheres of influence to impact youth positively is naturally occurring and therefore is mentoring.
That perspective begs the question, "does it count and is mentoring on the run enough?" Does mentoring involve time or quality time? Does mentoring involve a regular commitment to interaction with a young person? How do you negotiate time commitments to the youth in your life?
Please share your thoughts.
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