Coming from a dysfunctional family, I have learned that, as great as parenting books are, we always have to pray for the best possible outcome for our children’s future. Like fingerprints, everyone is different.
You see I come from a family of three. I am a successful Social Media and Project Manager. I have two great kids and a wonderful husband. I have a brother who’s a chef at a prominent golf course in London, Ontario. He has two children who are very successful. Lastly, I have another brother who sits in an urn on my mother’s end table.
He was nothing less than a genius in his youth who excelled at hockey. He was an NHL Contender until drug addiction took over his whole existence.
The one with the most promising future died at thirty six years of age.
Being that I was ten years younger than him, I am truly amazed that my life turned out so well. I suppose my spiritual side guided me through those scary times as a child. As well, my own independence allowed me to accept that the attention I deserved just wasn’t possible.
Despite the dysfunction, there was one wonderful thing that came out of our family. As a whole, we’ve never had a fight that caused distance. As siblings, we always were kind to one another. It’s amazing that when I look at these well-bred families just how much animosity exists. I’ve been blessed in one way.
I was sitting beside one woman at a conference and telling her how hard the teenage years are as a mother. She had tots and said that hers would not be that way because of the children’s school and the discipline within the home. I quietly smiled and went back to reading the schedule of the day.
I sent a prayer her way and hoped, that for her sake, her statement would come true. We just never know where the road of life will take our kids and even ourselves. I’m only thirty eight and I still have a lot of life to live as well.
I hope that I instilled good values and morals to assist my kid’s to live authentically. I hope that they become strong adults with a good sense of self.
However, in my experience, I also hold my breath like I’m on a roller-coaster heading up the hill. Seeing them as teens now, I realize that the one I had the most hope for may just be the one I should be concerned about. But…..that may change once again!
No one knows how life will turn out for their sweet cherubs, especially those parenting books. Each individual is different and that is what makes our world so diverse.
Simply Pray.
