Just lately I have been using WordPress’s Daily Post to stimulate my blogging. It’s worked up to a point but one-word prompts are a bit dry so I’ll continue but just hide the word and it’s link in my normal blog.
Today they want us to consider the word contrast.
My first thoughts went to the button on the telly which when fiddled with, permanently ruins the picture. It never seems right again.
Then I considered my wife and family.
We are a bunch of contrasting people.
Our intelligence varies hugely as does our social ability.
Physically we range from “disabled” to ex-Captain of the school rugby team.
Our senses of humour are polar. Jo is laughing as I say the punchline where Heather sits looking at me quizzically.
My hair is curly as is Ashley’s where the rest have straight hair.
I love SciFi and horror where the girls prefer Criminal Minds and Dance Moms.
I am glad of these contrasts. They make us who we are as a family and show me that we have provided our children with enough freedom to develop as individuals rather than as Mum and Dad’s clones.
It’s a tough part of parenting: to identify the best traits we would like to see in our kids and to give them the elbow room to be individuals.
Some facets are shared of course.
Jo had a conversation with a teacher where she stood her ground and politely told him that the reason she hadn’t finished a piece was because, despite asking, he hadn’t supported her. He took the time later to apologise and say she is quite stubborn and wasn’t afraid to speak her mind.
Her reply was simply “you haven’t met my Dad yet, have you?”
Maybe we’re getting some things right.
