Tuesday, April 16, 2013

What are parents to do?






 
I say to you:  Remember your children are watching.  During times of fear, stress and chaos your children are watching.  When you feel and anger, fear and helplessness: your children are watching.  During times of crisis your children are watching.

Children get their cues on how to behave from you.  So if you are stressed, overwrought, angry or depressed, you can expect the same from them.  This can be your finest hour of parenting or your worst.  The choice is yours.  Guard their childhood by shielding them from all of the news coverage of upsetting events.  If they are school age and learn about it from other sources, think of the messages you want to instill in them about the events.  Focus on the people who rushed in to help, who give of themselves without question.  Who work every day to keep our nation safe and secure and our neighborhoods as well.

During times of difficulty, choose to rise above the situation.  Choose to be the parent who can smile in the face of adversity.  Choose to be the neighbor who is reaching out to comfort others.  Choose to lend a hand, donate blood, take a meal to your firefighters.  Choose to be the person who creates a feeling of warmth and calm in the midst of frustration and chaos.

You will be teaching your children such a POWERFUL message.  Everything will be fine.  Everything will eventually be normal again. And while things are not how you would like them to be, you are able to choose to make the best of it--for you, for your family, for your neighbors, for our future!  We must teach our children to value their freedom and love their country.
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