Thank you Lou, for assembling this deeply won wisdom about parenting from parents who are doing their best and learning important lessons along the way.
To which I would add the following sublime insight about parents and their children from Kahlil Gibran:
-----
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.
Thank you Lou, for assembling this deeply won wisdom about parenting from parents who are doing their best and learning important lessons along the way.
To which I would add the following sublime insight about parents and their children from Kahlil Gibran:
-----
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.
(from 'The Prophet', 1923)
Thanks, Baird -- that's terrific. Reminds me of Chapter 4 of "The Parents Tao Te Ching" -- Infinite Possibilities:
"You do not know the true origin of your children.
You call them yours
but they belong to a greater Mystery.
You do not know the name of this Mystery
but it is the true Mother and Father of your children.
At birth your children are filled with possibilities.
It is not your job to limit these possibilities.
Do not say, 'This and that are not possible for you.
These other things are not.'
They will discover on their own what is and is not possible.
It is your job to help them stay open
to the marvelous mysteries of life.
It may be interesting to ask,
'What limitations have I, unthinking,
taken upon myself?'
It is very difficult for your child's horizons
to be greater than your own.
Do something today that pushes
against your preconceptions.
Then take your child's hand
and gently encourages her to do the same."
Yes, that's great. I especially like
"It is your job to help them stay open to the marvelous mysteries of life."
Nice post. Thanks
Thanks, Pedro — appreciate you reading!
Thank you--your words mean a lot to Dad and me. I love you.
Thanks for putting this together, Lou, and for inviting me to contribute. Great post.
Appreciate you, Jesse!