What has surprised you the most about the experience of parenting? If you are like me, in the early days, it was the profound exhaustion, the total loss of freedom, the new appreciation for what "24/7" really means, and the insane LOVE. As my children have grown and become more capable, I find new surprises lurk around each bend in the road. Many of these new surprises fall into the general category of "Feelings." When my children have what I like to call "Big Feelings," it can be hard to know how to handle them. I want to kiss it and make it all better (or at least turn down their volume). But, they are not babies anymore, and the hurts are much more complicated, and this is only the beginning! I am only sure of only one thing - I am powerless over their feelings. Sometimes I really hate that fact, but I am learning to accept it, and with acceptance comes the (sometimes) enjoyable and (always) enlightening process of helping them develop tools to identify, express, and eventually let go of their feelings. Living this process has given me hope - a hope that my children will come to know the vastness of their emotions without being slaves to them or enslaving others with them. This hope inspired me to write a little story for a young friend of mine. When I shared the story with my 9-year old daughter, she enthusiastically volunteered to illustrate it for me. We hope you enjoy it.
The magic bracelet:
Thank you for sharing your post Ryan. I love how your daughter helped in illustrating the story and how you both worked on the project together, it's a lovely story. As I mom, I can relate to wanting to protect the kids from big feelings and I love seeing your process on how you guide them through your example and love. Great job!
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