I’m seeing this charity reach over into their adult lives, as well. Just last week, my second oldest son, Hampton, was running for Student Bar Association at Cumberland Law School. We could not have been more excited to help him win. Scott, my husband, is a wonderful artist and created the artwork to go with the slogan Hampton had created. My oldest daughter designed the graphics for the artwork for stickers, flyers, and posters along with a schedule of social posts. As a family, we put our heads together to form the text for posts and emails. We’d talk to him each night on speaker phone as a family about concerns from the day and strategy for the next few days, so everyone had a part in the campaign. We were all on pins and needles waiting for the results…and when HE WON, the house erupted with screams of excitement. We ALL felt the victory; we all worked for it.
Because they have worked with and for one another during their lives to make our home function, the children freely help each other with their own endeavors. I’m astounded at their service toward Scott and me in our businesses and everything we put our hands to. There seems to be no resentment and a complete joy in helping one another. I believe it has become their habit; they shoot for “the good feeling,” as Opie would say on the Andy Griffith Show.
It’s hard to believe that boundaries, such as ownership of space, toys, and the like, along with letting the kids work out their differences instead of stepping in and telling them what to do would make this big of a difference, but it really does. When the children come to you to mediate a sharing issue, your response is, “Who does it belong to?” There’s the answer. Of course, I interject, “It would be kind of you to share,” but I don’t make them do so. They will suffer the consequences if they choose not to. In the end they know it is a good thing to share, for later the favor will be returned.
Happy Parenting!
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