The Hardest Job You’ll Ever Love?
My job as a parent these days seems to be acting as the official naysayer in my children’s lives about 98% of the time.
No you can’t play computer games today because you already watched three hours of television. No, we are not getting ice cream because you’ve already had loads of crap today. And no, you cannot buy it with your own money either. No, you can’t count the last five minutes that you’ve spent arguing with your brother as part of your piano practicing.
Often my job is to end an activity that has already begun. Stop running through the sprinkler in your new school clothes. Stop wiping your hands on the the tablecloth. Your napkin is right there. Stop saying the punch line over and over again. It doesn’t make the joke any funnier.
On a daily, really hourly, basis, I’m just trying to reinforce messages that I’ve been working on for many years. Brush your teeth! Pick up your things! Please, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, flush the damn toilet already, will you!?
I’ve heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. That is also the definition of parenting as far as I can tell. I am sure that the experts would be able to suggest some effective techniques for teaching my children, but the mental exhaustion I suffer as I navigate endless negotiations, reminders and lectures makes it hard to even think about that kind of innovation. I’m just not that clever. I just have to hope that repetition and example will eventually do the trick.