Lessons Learned

I'm sure most, if not all, parents have experienced epiphanies while raising their children. It is not uncommon to experience those "Ah-hah!" moments when we come to understand some facet of human behavior by watching our children go through their experiences. Some of them can even be painful as we are brought up short with our own faults thrown back in our face. Today, I realized again that, while I may find certain behaviors and attitudes of my children to be annoying, I should really try to work on acting more like them.

They play hard, they love greatly, they are loyal (minus the occasional upsets that beset their sibling relationships, but beware the one who goes against a family member), they laugh deeply and often, they are honest and open, they call the cards the way they see them, and so much more.

It never ceases to amaze me how they can go from best friends, to bitter enemies, and back again, sometimes in almost the same breath. Peter will torment his sisters unmercifully and then turn around and work just as hard to make them laugh it off. Ellie dances the way she feels, she doesn't hold back. She doesn't hold back with much at all. They each have something so unique to offer the world, and it helps me remember that we all have something to offer. Liahna is unfailingly caring for other people. She often tells me about her friends at school that she helped in some way and she is generous to a fault (except for those occasional moments with her brother) with those that she is around. What life lessons are learned as they grow up.

The saying "I learned all I needed to know in Kindergarten" could easily be said "I learned all I needed to know when my kids finished Kindergarten."