Your Child's Perspective

Today I am focused on taking a look at the relationship I have with my child. I realized that I am often so caught up in my job as a parent that I don’t take time to think about what life must be like at 2 1/2 feet tall. And even though I am focusing on my 2-year-old, I believe this applies to children of all ages. How quickly we forget what it was like to be their age. I have decided to make it a habit to take a few moments on a regular basis to try to remember what is was like being a toddler, or at least to try to imagine what it would be like. I think to really connect and give from our heart, especially when we are creating safe boundaries, it’s important to remember where they are developmentally, physically, and emotionally.
Of course I enjoy the time that I am able to spend with my son, but even while we are having fun reading or creating art I am so often operating in the parent-child dynamic, reminding him of all of the rules: “don’t eat the play dough,” “only color on the paper,” “sit down while you eat,” “don’t throw that,” “don’t chew on that” and the list goes on. Today, I stopped and thought about what it would be like to be two. You are finally able to get your body to cooperate with your mind, you can communicate your basic needs, and you are starting to really know what you like and dislike, but you are always being met with redirection. I can only imagine how frustrating it would be to have most of your great ideas resulting in an irritated parent; dumping the dog food into the dog water to see how big of a splash it would make seems completely brilliant in the moment until your parent drops a “what the … you have to be kidding me.”
My ramblings are not to suggest that you should loosen up the reins—all kids need and appreciate boundaries, but perhaps every so often we should take a few moments out of our day to identify with our children and where they are in their lives, and hopefully find a little more compassion on the days that we need it most.

May you find abundance in all that you do!

Trisha
www.whyreiki.com