I recently found this old home movie of my brother and I learning to roller skate and bike ride:
Sometimes we fall and get hurt. Aiming for perfection is unrealistic for all of us, but aiming to be the best we can be while enjoying the process is ‘perfectly’ doable. We want our kids to be resilient, and to understand that practice is required for proficiency. Struggle is often necessary before a skill becomes automatic.
We want to advise our children against doing what we feel will cause them pain. We aim to help them avoid making the same mistakes we made in our own lives. Remember that making a mistake is an opportunity and a portal to new ways of thinking. After all, we don’t learn to walk without falling. Falling helps us find our balance, and once we can walk, we learn to run. Once we realize it’s okay to make a mistake, we learn to problem solve and think creatively around obstacles.
Accept ourselves for who we are. Be fearless and soar with imagination.
We are along for the ride with our children….we are there to support them, and pick up the pieces with them.
In May, Pragmatic Mom opened a thoughtful dialogue about the challenge of parenting passion in kids. Please read her post here:
Teaching Perseverance to Children: Lesson from a Yo-Yo Champion
*As adults, we aren’t required to be perfect.* We are allowed to learn from our mistakes as we find success. My friend, Thuy Yau, author of Inside a Mother’s Mind, says it well in her inspiring blog post:
There is No Success Without Failure
Here are links to some of my favorite children’s books about making mistakes, self-acceptance, self-forgiveness, and treasuring our unique attributes:
Kids Music By Marcie 