It’s grad season, and I look at the teenagers of today, full of hope for the future.
In my arrogant youth I thought I could handle it all, we got married, had a baby, started our own business and bought a house all in the same year.
There were times I thought I was breaking, and there were more times I would find myself broken.
Some of these graduates will make life look easy, and some of these young adults will fall flat on their face 100 times.
And both sets will be ok.
They are not supposed to have it all together.
They are not supposed to have fancy vehicles and the best clothing and a job that starts them at the top… as parents we have to remember perspective.
The more you fail, the more you figure out what your priorities are and who your friends are.
The more more you lose, the more you appreciate the wins.
The more you live, the more you appreciate the journey.
These blooming adults need all of these experiences in order to turn into the people this world needs them to be.
We don’t need to wrap them in bubble wrap, we just need to be there to love them when they fall down, just like we kissed their owies when they fell off their bikes.
We don’t need to be angry when they make a mistake or make a bad choice, instead we need to be compassionate because we know mistakes hurt deeply, and if they make the same mistake enough times they will learn from it just like we did.
We don’t need to expect them to become rich and famous or make the big leagues… that’s our own ego and inexperience talking.
We just need them to know we admire who they are becoming, no matter who that is…and that we love them no matter what.
Life is going to kick their ass, we don’t have to be the ones who do it.