Of all the things we do for our kids, waiting for them to be ready is one of the things that we will do throughout their lives.
It starts when they’re a baby and we want them to go to sleep or to eat or to laugh…
Then, for them to learn to talk; often, only leading to us wanting them to not talk…quite so very much!
When they’re a toddler, for them to finish eating on their own and to limit their use of “no” and “me do it!”
It quickly accelerates after that…
- Waking up to go to school on time;
- Getting on the bus by themselves to come safely home;
- Homework;
- Chores;
- Study habits;
- Self sufficiency (laundry, making their own lunch, self care, making or at least starting dinner when mom and dad are out later than planned);
- High school;
- College acceptance;
- Graduation;
- College. Funded…
- A career that includes a paying “jobby-job” – and hopefully they don’t hate it altogether, and it helps them live on their own.
All the time we are allowing the time to pass, all we want to do is hold on tight…hug them and make sure that they are happy, safe and all right.
Some day, they will be ready to be an adult, living on their own – leading us to waiting for them to realize the hug is all we ever need. For that they must come and visit – hopefully bringing their spouse, children and their love back into our homes. In the end, this is the gift – the one that we wait for the entire time and want more than anything else in the world.
~Dawn aka Hat Girl