Parenting. It's a sensitive subject and there are a vast number of opinions on the topic. I've shared my opinions and parenting style of choice in blog posts past.
I've made my fair share of parenting blunders. I've done a lot wrong, but I would like to think I've done more right. There will always be areas I wish I had handled a situation differently, spoken a little more softly, reacted a little less abruptly, etc. But I don't believe in living in regret. Regret will eat you up, rob you of today, the present, and the gift of the now in front of you. Don't live in regrets. Trust me on that one.
So, instead of regret, I look at how I can do things differently going forward. This is where the opening quote struck me right between the eyes.
How many times has one of my girls wanted my undivided attention and I responded to them, "just a minute, I'm busy," "I need to make this phone call," "we'll do that tomorrow," "you can tell me later," or "not right now, I've got laundry, dishes, dinner, etc to do." My younger daughter often asks me to watch a show with her. I oblige her request with my physical presence, but I sit there and scroll through social media sites on my phone or answer e-mails from my laptop. She comments. I make excuses. Eventually she stopped asking. Sigh.
When my girls were younger, I was a fanatic about my house being clean. If it wasn't clean I got grouchy (ok, some things haven't changed)...having a clean house and everything in order was my priority. In hindsight I wish I would've ignored the sink full of dishes, dusty baseboards and piles of laundry and spent a little more time on the floor coloring, playing Polly Pockets, Thomas the Train, and dress up.
I heard a statistic (I don't know the source) this generation of teens is the loneliest, most depressed generation ever. After spending some time with this generation, I can testify to these facts. In our busyness we've left behind the fundamentals of family time, dinner around the table and other relational family activities. We've lost our relational connectedness as a result.
Father God is always available. He doesn't have to check His calendar or pencil us in. If I have something I want to share with Him or talk about, He is there and the best listener I know! As I have stated in previous posts on parenting, I want Father God to be my parenting model.
I want to listen more to my girls and comment less. I want to disconnect from social media, ministry and the "to-do list" long enough to be completely and totally PRESENT for them. I want to give them the gift of my time...because let's be honest, time is a gift, not a commodity we can buy.
No matter what your parenting style, I think we can agree, time is something all children need. Are you giving your children the gift of your presence? If not, start today!
