LIVINGwell
“
Parenthood...It's about guiding the next generation, and forgiving the last.” ~ Peter Krause
“Through the blur, I won-
dered if I was alone or if other parents felt the same way I did - that everything involving our children was painful in some way. The emotions, whether they were joy, sorrow, love or pride, were so deep and sharp that in the end they left you raw, exposed and yes, in pain. The human heart was not designed to beat outside the human body and yet, each child represented just that - a parent's heart bared, beating forever outside its chest.” ~ Debra Ginsberg
L
Your Parenting Superpowers
ife is a funny thing. Things you thought you knew for certain turn out to be not true. And wonderful things you didn’t even see coming land in your lap. It’s the twists and turns that keep things interesting. And there is no more interesting adventure than the adventure of parenting. It’s back to school time so I thought I’d do a special parenting article. Now before you turn the page and move on, please know these principals apply to you, even if you don’t have any children of your own. But that’s my surprise ending so I’m not going to give it away just now; I’m just teasing you with it to keep you invested.
Back to School Special
“One thing I had learned from watching chimpanzees with their infants is that having a child should be fun.” ~ Jane Goodall
This topic was chosen because every September I am always
affected by the energy of back to school. It marks another cycle of growth for children as they advance through their schooling and it always holds the promise of new beginnings. And that sense of a new beginning is what I want to give you this month. Then, as it always happens, I came across a wonderful little video by Jack Canfield, the author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series that described exactly what I was thinking about sharing with you.
The Story of Bobsie “You try as a parent. You love beyond reason.
You fight beyond endurance. You hope beyond despair. You never think, until the very last moment, that it still might not be enough.” ~ Lisa Gardner
Here is the story Jack Canfield told on that video that capti-
vated me. “There was a little boy named Bobsie and he woke one morning in terrible pain. So his parents took him to the doctor
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NaturalTriad.com Discover
and after several specialists looked him over it was discov- ered he had a quick growing form of terminal cancer. So his parents, knowing he did not have the luxury of growing up and real- izing his dreams, asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up and he said he wanted to be a fireman. So his parents went to the Make A Wish Foundation and arranged for Bobsie to be a fire- man for a day. However, the Phoenix Fire Chief went above and beyond and made Bobsie
Chief for the Day, including his own custom made fire uniform with Chief hat. Bobsie had a great day and his vital signs rallied for a short while. But the day soon arrived when Bobsie was slowly slipping away. His parents called the Fire Department to see if they could send over a representative and again they went over and above. Five firemen came through Bobsie’s third floor window to be by his bedside. As they rocked the boy, Bobsie looked up and asked if he was a real fireman and the Chief re- sponded, ‘Bobsie you were always a real fireman. ’And with that Bobsie slipped quietly away.”
Now this is a very touching story but it was even more pow-
erful because of what Jack Canfield said next. He said, “We are all touched by this because this little boy realized his dream. But tonight when you are brushing your teeth, do something different and stop for a moment. Look into the mirror into your own eyes and see the eyes behind them; the eyes of your little child look- ing out, searching for a way to make their dreams come true.”
The Secret to Your Parenting Superpowers “No matter how calmly you try to referee, parenting will
eventually produce bizarre behavior, and I'm not talking about the kids. Their behavior is always normal.” ~ Bill Cosby
In this kernel of truth is where your parenting superpowers lie. But this truth lies hidden in the illusion that parenting has to do with our children, when in fact parenting is all about how we treat ourselves. It’s also why this lesson applies to everyone, in- cluding those without kids. What? You say that can’t be and you want proof? OK here
you go. Sit down and make a list of all the things you admire about your child and all the things that annoy you about him/ her. (If you don’t have any children substitute your spouse or a close friend or co-worker.) Then make a list of all the things you admire about yourself and the things that annoy you about yourself – you know bad habits, faults, those negative things your parents said about you (these are very important to list, because even if you don’t think these are true write them down because they affected you nev- ertheless).
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