Thursday, August 26, 2010

Taking Flight

This morning my husband and I proudly watched as our 11 year old son rode his bike to his first day of middle school. In many ways, I suppose, it's like he's going off to college. Fifth grade was a giant turning point. It was his time to test boundaries and flex his wings.

This past year, one realization has become very clear to me. We, as parents, get the first 10 years of a child's life to plant seeds, we hope, will guide them through life's journeys. During the first years of life your children need you and look up to you as Gods. I know there will be other opportunities to guide, but I suspect those will come few and far between and only when he comes to me for help. We must be vigilant, without being noticed. This is the next parenting skill to master.

For now, the dreaded rolling of the eyes and "I know it all attitude" has raised its ugly head. Funny, I thought I would be immune to such an attitude, being the cool, hip mom that I am. It's all "RANDOM" now. If you haven't heard it yet, it's this new generations "cool word" of the day. Do they even know what the word means? Random: Not expected. Something that is unpredictable, has no pattern or objective. Sounds to me like a good way to get out of using your brain, to figure things out. But what do I know. I'm only THE MOM: Goddess of the allowance.

No comments: