A Brave Writer’s Life in Brief

A little parenting advice:

Take your time.

Take your time to find out what went wrong.

Take your time to determine the best response to what happened that

upset,
worried, or
disappointed you.

Take your time to listen to your child’s version.

Take your time to consider the child’s

motivations,
intentions, and
limitations.

Take your time to recover from the shock.

Take your time before making declarations or summary judgments.

Take your time to remember being

young,
inexperienced, and
impulsive.

Take your time to

imagine a solution,
a method of repair, or
a pathway to reconciliation.

Take your time to put the problem in the context of an entire childhood, not just today’s worries.

Mull things over.

Go away from the problem, and come back to it later.

Get some sleep.

Eat some protein.

No rushes to judgment.

No loud voices.

No dire predictions.

No over-reactions.

Meander,
consider,
ponder,
reflect,
appreciate,
let go,
gain strength.

Take your time to understand, guide, and support your

precious,
young,
new-to-the-planet

children.

Take your time.

Cross-posted on facebook.

Image by Kerem Tapani Gültekin

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