I found this little gem in my Instagram drafts and it brought a tear to my eye. I recorded it in the spring of 2024. My mother was still alive at the time.

It struck me as I re-watched it that the foundation of self-worth is the faith that my parents have in me. Each of them have expressed in many different ways that the person I am is someone they are proud of and that they love.

They have weathered all kinds of changes in my beliefs, in my choices, in how I conduct myself as a grown-up. They haven’t always agreed with all those choices.

But at the core of my identity is the deep knowledge that both my parents love me and are proud of me.

If you’re worried about your kids right now and the choices they’re making, what matters more is that they know that they are important to you and that you are proud to be their parent.

You can’t protect your children from making choices they regret. But you can be the person that supports them no matter what.

So go forth and tell your kids today, “I think you’re the bees knees.” Then give them a big hug and tossle their hair.

Watch the Video

This entry is filed under Parenting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.