The thing that bugged me the most about the memorial , was the fact that Michael's children were so exposed. He went through so much trouble to keep the media away from them and to keep their identities hidden; I don't know why his family would put them on the stage for millions of people to see them and for the press to take pictures.
It reminds me of my hubby and I deciding early on that our children would be vegetarians and they wouldn't eat a lot of sweets. One day I made the mistake of letting my two sisters babysit, and without my consent they gave them soda, candy and red meat.
We had a huge falling out. I felt as though my wishes as their parent wasn't respected and I NEVER left my children with them again.
It got to the point where I couldn't even leave them in the same room with a relative without that relative offering candy or soda. My children would politely tell them, no thank you; but it ticked me off that someone would try to give them things that my hubby and I didn't want them to have .
It really does come down to, respecting parental wishes. I felt Michael's wishes to keep the anonymity of his children protected wasn't honored. No matter how strange outsiders may have thought it was for him to hide their faces, that was his wish and it should have been honored. I thought it was horrible that his daughter was allowed to speak in front the world, in one of the most difficult times, of her young life.
Perhaps an adult could have read a statement on the children's behalf. I just hope the press will leave them alone and that the family will try to protect them and keep them away from the spotlight. They have a tough time ahead of them, I hope they will have as normal a life as possible and not feel as though they are being hunted, like their father felt.
