Your strengths as a parent

When my older children were small, I always envied other dads who could spend hours chasing a ball with their children. I was somewhat ashamed that I was never able to do this for more than a few choking minutes. Well, I did not have any sports talents in me.

And I also had a friend who built a hut for his children in the garden on a tree.("Daddy, Daddy, why do not we have such a hut?") And one of my friends at each children's holiday organized an exciting trekking trip for the young guests. And the other went with her daughter to the same ballet school as I did with mine, but somehow managed to convincingly pretend that she was enjoying it.

You probably understand what I'm leading to. Quite right: I was too obsessed with things I could not do, although I could do a bunch of things that others could not;but such things seemed to me a matter of course, and I did not adequately assess my abilities and abilities.

For example, I always liked to read to children out loud. My openness and artistry( yes, even bordering on exhibitionism) allowed me to get a real pleasure from reading for many hours long stories, where I could turn around, voicing characters for different voices, creating the necessary special effects and building faces. But since I did all this without actually realizing what I was doing, it was so natural and effortless to get out of it - that only years later I could understand that I have the ability to be no less valuable thanfootball or building talent.

When I( the farther, the less often and less often) still went out to play with children in football, it was quite clear that I do this solely for reasons of my parental duty.

Well, you can hardly avoid such situations, and you will do quite a lot of things simply because these are your parental responsibilities. So I, although infrequently, was forced to play football, knowing firmly that I would never be able to match my friend in this business and drive the ball as inspirationally as he does. But in doing so, he most likely could not read the books aloud to the children the way it was for me. Or cook the same amazing spaghetti.

In short, the right parents must be aware of what they are capable of surpassing others. They take up any case, if necessary, but they know what their strengths are, and they know how to use them. If you have trouble with football, read books, bake pies, teach children to play the piano or repair motors, share their fascination with "Star Wars", motorcycle races or a fairy tale about the turnip( yes, I understand, the last is the task for the strongest ones).

It is very important to know what your merits are, and to be confident in your own abilities. If this is so, then the sight of other parents, doing with children something that you will never do in life, will not cause you a feeling of inferiority. After all, in fact, you and I know perfectly well that these other parents can not do everything. As soon as you begin to feel the creeping attack of envy, just stop and remind yourself what talents you have.