143: Parenting (V)

On letting children guide you.

Jeremy Finch

10 Dec 2023 — 3 min read

My favorite part of sending an email newsletter = getting your responses.

I learn a ton from people.

In my third parenting post, I asked about toddler movement wisdom.

After part four, I asked a few readers what advice they would go back and give to their earlier parent-selves.

Someone sent this response :

I think I would tell earlier me that being a parent is the best and hardest thing I've ever done. To not go into it thinking everything is black and white or that you'll only do things exactly a certain way because, well, you just don't know until you are in it.

Sure, you'll have some non-negotiable values most likely, but let your child "guide" you as a parent. Be open to doing things the way that feel right to you, not dictated by society's endless list of "musts." And to know that you'll grow and change as your child does.

And that if you are lucky enough to go through the experience of raising a kid with a partner you love, savor it. And if you co-parent, respect each other and remember it's about your child first and foremost.

I love these reminders.