Big Problems In Their Small World 🌎

When we were children, many stories floated around; no reason to disbelieve some, which seems ‘logical’ at that time. My fruit story – maybe yours as well – was no different.

Growing fruit tree

Java apple – a small fruit almost in the size of gooseberry – took the villain role one day. Cousin-brother, knowledgeable than all the others in the room, discovered that I swallowed the seed mistakenly. “It will soon become a plant to outgrow your stomach that you can do nothing,” he warned.

I had enough reasons to believe that a plant is growing inside the tummy. In a way that it’s getting ready to penetrate the body with its sharp branches!

Different thinking

Elders think practically, but a child won’t. In children, anything diverted from its normal course has the potential to become a problem unless reasoned with their limited thinking. That’s why a baseless allegation or a bullying attempt or a non-sense threat saddens them.

Living in a world of full uncertainty, children will always have problems, and that gets bigger as they grew older. Though emotional impact varies in degree between different age groups, their demand to parents are the same – take us seriously and don’t measure our problems in your weighing scale.

Super-hero or Super-zero?

Superhero, be it Spiderman or Superman, solves other’s problems with courage and supernatural powers. To become a superhero-parent, just do the same.

Children often receive adequate care and emotional support from parents. But, being categorized as grownups, teenagers are mostly overlooked. 

For example, some teenage boys have enlarged breasts due to hormonal imbalance in the body, termed gynecomastia scientifically. Let’s draw a clear line between good and bad parenting with the help of this particular example. 

Four tips for being a super-hero parent

Bad parenting: Not welcoming and busy all the time.

Good parenting: Promotes interactions and they are easily approachable. They lend the ears to son without any counter-arguments.

Tip 1: Continuous engagement with children creates an environment of openness in the home.

Bad parenting: Repeatedly questioning the son for not taking off the shirt publicly.

Good parenting: Notices son’s reluctance to remove the shirt, wonder why and search for reasons.

Tip 2: Proactive parents understand the problem in advance without initiation from the child.

Bad parenting: Trivialize the problem saying that hormone imbalance is common nowadays and nothing much to worry.

Good parenting: Thinking from son’s point of view, and understand the psychological impact on him.

Tip 3: Don’t make sense out of their problems. Because, they have to face completely different world than yours.

Bad parenting: Continue suggesting to accept the fact and move on.

Good parenting: Will try to solve the problem by all means, even go for plastic surgery if that is the only option.

Tip 4: exercise honest efforts to solve problems.

One life, and many choices

Children are our pride. And such small small prides make our life meaningful. So, for a meaningful life, stand by them during tough times. More importantly, the seriousness of the problem shouldn’t determine a parent’s swiftness. Instead, adopt all-problems-are-serious approach to emerge as a super-hero parent.