Living so close to our children aged 2 and 5 for 12 months traveling through Thailand, Nepal, India and the UK. Sleeping every night together, spending every waking day together. Exploring, observing, planning together.
I find myself the Dad who is at home while Clarissa returns to work after 6 years.
It is now my turn, without the stress of work in the background of my mind, I have the luxury to fully focus on both of them, getting in tune with their feelings, their cycles, their individuality, their thoughts and then use that to coax them into a western lifestyle of getting from place to place on time, brushing their teeth, getting them to wear trousers when going out, even wearing a seat belt.
My hat goes out the to stay at home mums, especially the ones doing it solo!. I see the facebook posts of their frustrations and challenges. I used to think “chill out, there is no need to be so emotional, so stressed and sometimes even angry at the simple things”.
Its a journey, constantly changing, constantly a challenge. I discovered I need plenty of sleep and to have my wits and patience (in bucket fulls) about me.
Over the last 3 weeks I have walked beside metaphorically with our 2 children with one starting school and the other at kindy. It's been an exciting and changing time for them. They both have taken on the challenge but are after all just normal children and often just don't feel like it but the world has its own schedule which does not stop.
There is no manual, every child is different, things change change almost daily. I have found the most influential tool is storytelling, telling stories days and weeks ahead about the challenges they will face physically and emotionally with how the character in the story approaches the challenge and solves their own problem. see my previous post on this.
This time although challenging is also one of my most rewarding times in life, but it's not that obvious.
You need to stop and think and cherish the relationship and trust you have with your child, think about what you mean to them as their parent, their role model. But also what they mean to you, close personal friend, buddy to enjoy the most mundane things in life.
time to go pick one up from school and hear about her day, her thoughts and her dreams. .........
