Sometimes I wonder, what parents have children for. Sometimes it appears that they have become more often than not a check mark. Some thing to show off to your friends and then shooed off to play. Ignored until it is to late. Until parents can not understand why they hate mom and dad. Everything has been given to them, everything, newest toys, best clothes....Everything they need is given, but is it really? Has time been taken, life lessons been taught, love been given abundantly, their worldview set in place? Have you ever seen children that look lifeless? The ones that seem to be missing something yet you can not quite put your finger on it.
How do you ensure that the important things are taught and the material things are not? What do you do to have balance in your children's life? How can you not look at the amazing gift laid before you and continue to live like you did before children? The gift given is treated like everything else, it is nice but there is more and better things out there. Every time you pass up time with a child for things of ol' you teach an important lesson. Maybe it is one you don't even mean to teach. Mommy and Daddy look out for mommy and daddy. Why don't you entertain yourself. If that statement offends you maybe you need to check out the heart. One amazingly important gift I received from my parents was that, time spent with us (my brother and I) was far to valuable to pass up. What did that mean? My dad, gave up baseball, golfing, and skiing, by himself. He did attend all our sports events, take us camping, hiking, biking and eventually skiing. Did he give these things up totally? No but for a season (20years) he did. Did he say we were cramping his style? No. My mom, she worked but, only part time and made it to all our field trips. She was the mom's group you wanted to be in. She was the cool mom. She also made time for us too. Both of them did something, most of us miss out on, investing time into our children's lives. They did and still do have a standing date every other Saturday, they bowl together. They had a balance. Do you have one?
Some of us might be thinking well you have it wrong sister I do everything for them. I run them in twenty different directions seven days a week. Really wow, super mom. When do you have family time, where is your down time. While I agree children should participate in activities do you draw a line or run like a crazy woman? Do you see each other in passing? Hey love you bye. Communicate more by phone and messages than in person? Maybe you are thinking my children wouldn't know what to do with themselves if we didn't have anything going on. Have you tried? Have you said today we are going to entertain ourselves without the usage of Wii, PS3, TV or computer, today we are going to play bored games or be outside? It might mean unplug everything. Let them find something to do, let you find something to do. When is the last time you had a conversation longer than "How was school?" "Fine."
What about their worldview? Who is shaping it? School, friends, sports teams, magazines, Hollywood, or you? How do you make sure that you are the one forming it? Children, your gifts, need special time and attention. They need it invested every day. It might mean forgoing a reality show, or a golf game, maybe a ladies night out.
Mine are gifts entrusted to me for a time, a blink of an eye, a shadow in a lifetime of light. Do you think of yours this way? Can you not wait to see them in the morning? Smiling and saying good morning mommy? Do I do things perfectly? No. It is a daily, will I chose to invest in the most precious gifts bestowed in my life? Yes, I will. Will you?
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