We have reached a new milestone in our home – we have a
seven year old! While every birthday is special, I know in my heart that this
one is different. I can see it in his eyes, in his smile, in his deeper
thinking. My “snuggle bunny” is no longer a little boy. He no longer needs me
for everything; he understands that momma is good for some things, many things,
but not everything. I always knew he was what this world would categorize as a “genius”;
I just didn’t realize his internal knowledge would even allow him to peg me
correctly.
We have finally reached the point in our relationship where
I know I can’t be his everything. It is time for me to step aside and let my
husband step into his role as primary parent. Don’t get me wrong, I am still
very much necessary in the life of my son. I love him and he loves me. He needs
me and will need me for a very long time. I am still the primary home schooling
parent and there is much I still need to teach him, even in terms of life.
However, I can also admit he has reached some places where
the area is too gray for me to be a good guide. I know, inside and out, all
there is to growing into a woman; I don’t have the knowledge necessary to help
him become a man. This road is too important to be left to chance; I could only
impart “book knowledge” and that is not nearly enough. Add to that my son being
a Black man, with all the nuance and rules and baggage I just don’t quite fully
understand. I look at my son now and I start to see the shadows of my husband
in his eyes, he is very much his daddy’s son. His dad can tell him about being
a “nerd” and loving it, being who you are and not falling into traps of what
society tells you to be, being quiet and kind – but still knowing how to put a
bully down and his back. My husband is the absolute perfect embodiment of being
meek and mild, yet strong and capable. He is like Professor X without the
wheelchair, or maybe the Hulk without the emotional problems – just a kind,
gentle, brilliant man who can pull out a
good can of “whoop ass” if he needs to protect his family. He can teach the
balance that I am not required to have in a way that has our “family seal” if
you will.
My job isn’t done in the least, but it has changed. I,
however, don’t at all feel the push to pawn him off on society and turn him
over to “friends” for “socialization”. He still needs two parents in his life;
my husband and I are just switching roles a bit. For over seven years (yes, I
include my time being pregnant) I was everything to my son. I rubbed my belly
and spoke soft words to him as he grew; I nursed him exclusively for six months,
and then continued to nurse him for a year. I monitored his time with the nanny
like a hawk and was the absolute helicopter parent for his one year in private
school. I swooped in like a momma eagle when we knew it was time to home school
and I thrived in my job as “everything”. Now, I move from being “everything” to
being essential. I see “essential” like the essential vitamins and minerals our
bodies need to live. We need 20 vitamins and minerals, but the body produces
only 11; we have to get the other 9 from the food we eat. What my son needs
from me he can’t get anywhere else in the world. There are some essential
things that only a momma can impart and to not give him what he needs from me will
leave him under nourished in his development. It’s time for me to concentrate
on those things. If I tried to continue to be everything, I would flounder in
those things that can only exclusively come from mom. I guess my role hasn’t
really diminished, but shifted.
It’s still hard, leaving the role of everything. But, there
is no time to shed tears or long for that baby in my arms once again. There are
those essential things I need to start to focus on, to impart, and to give.
These seven years have been great, but I guess it’s time for the both of us to
grow a bit.
Here are those 9 Essential’s that will be coming from me:
1.
A healthy dose of cynicism/skepticism. I know,
you were probably thinking I would start with something about being loving,
sweet, and kind. That will come, but the best thing I can impart in my son is
being a skeptic and having the drive to find out for himself what is true.
2.
Moving toward perfection. My son can be a
perfectionist and that is hard. I used to tell him that it was okay, that what
he did was good enough. However, “good enough” isn’t good enough anymore, he is
older and ready for challenge. I need to teach him that good work takes
time. I need to teach him that sometimes
you try and fail and need to try again, sometimes what you have is good, but
you can do better. Sometimes we start with a draft, but we keep tweaking until
we get ever closer to that picture in our mind.
3.
Fun is necessary. What is the point of life if
you aren’t enjoying it? Having fun should be a part of everyday. Enjoy being
human. Being human is about having emotions, thoughts, desires, ambitions,
dreams, highs and lows, and everything else in between. You are not an animal
that has to rely on instinct; you are an individual with freewill. With
freewill comes a consequence (both good and bad) from your decisions – so
choose wisely. However, enjoy and embrace even the lows.
4.
Family matters. I will continue to foster and
encourage good, healthy, and strong sibling relationships. I am amazed at how
children are encouraged to abandon their siblings and cling to friends. However,
as people grow – that sibling relationship stays constant. Anyone with older
parents knows that siblings often times have to come together to make some
pretty big decisions (like whether or not to pull the plug on a parent). You
need a good, healthy, strong relationship for the road ahead that life offers.
Your siblings can be lifelong friends, lifelong enemies, or turn into casual
acquaintances. I want to encourage my eldest to look at his siblings as
potential best friends he can have for the rest of his life. People that loved
him before he could do anything great. His brother and sister have looked up to
and admired him from the day they were born, they were his fans before anyone
knew he was a genius – they will be there the when the world becomes unimpressed
that he took an “anatomy of the human brain” course at four years old. Of course, Mom and Dad will always be there
for you, always love you, and always do what we think is best for you. However,
we are not perfect. We have and will continue to make mistakes. Don’t be afraid
to acknowledge those mistakes or question our decisions. We can handle it and
no one should be followed blindly. You needed to trust as completely as a baby;
you are no longer a baby. We want you to be better than we are, and the one way
for you to do better is to not only take on what we have done well and do it
for yourself, but to learn from any mistakes we make and not duplicate them.
5.
Un-school on purpose. Learn those things you
want to know. Follow your passion, find your flow. The people that become great
are the ones who dug deeply into the things that ignited their fire. It’s easy
to learn the things you “have” to know in life and when all else fails – pay someone
to do those things for you. It’s amazing how much other stuff you learn while trying
to unlock the keys to the things that make you feel alive. The world has enough
cogs and people that simply do what is required of them. Society had enough
pegs that are fine with being banged on the head with the hammer of life until
they fit neatly into the slot predesignated for them. Embrace this unique
opportunity you have of blazing your own trail. You have everything anyone with
a passion could have ever desired – an amazing mind, a family to support you
emotionally and financially, an opportunity to find a dream worth following and
to pursue it, an environment where mistakes are allowed, and most importantly –
time. Many people find out much too late that life unfulfilled is barely worth
living and many people regret the risks not taken in the safety of youth. Einstein,
Picasso, Da Vinci or Steve Jobs couldn’t have hoped for a better environment
than what you have available to you right now. Take this opportunity and run
with it.
6.
To thyself be true. Know who you are, what you
enjoy, what you desire, what makes you happy, what you do well, and what you
need to work on. The person you will spend the most time with is yourself –
learn you and love you first. There is no box he needs to fit into, no mold he
needs to be pressed into, and no preset path he needs to walk, job, or run. Embrace
being unique and an individual. Everything society will tell you to do will try
to get you to conform, resist it with everything you have. It is what makes you
human – free will and uniqueness. Don’t ever give it up. However, you can be
true to a person you don’t know. Invest the time and energy of getting to know
you – even as you change, develop, and grow.
7.
You don’t have to “believe” you can “know”. This is akin to number one, except this will
deal with his own set of truths. One need not rely on faith or belief; he
should know what is true and search until he is satisfied with the answer. We
are not going to pass on “faith” to you, but knowledge. Knowledge that should
be checked, questioned, and checked again. Love requires a choice and you have
been given the amazing gift of freewill – use it. Relationship is 100% you own
decision.
8.
Health before wealth. Being healthy matters a
lot. Wealth is easier to get when you are healthy and it is easier to enjoy
when you are healthy. No use making a lot of money only to have to sit around
sick watching other people spend it.
9.
Love on purpose. Don’t fall in love; jump into
it with both eyes open understanding everything involved. Give your time,
energy, and heart only to people that first show they are worthy of it.
Appreciate those that care about who you are as an individual, with no sign of
reward from their efforts.
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