I know the sky is calling.
Angel, let me help you with your wings.
From the moment we cut the umbilical cord, our role as
parents is to help our children develop into independent, confident, happy
adults. We play peekaboo to teach them
object permanence – the confidence that when we cover our eyes with our hands, we
are still there. We hold their hands as
they take their first steps; hold the back of the seat, then run alongside, as
they take their first bike ride. When
they skin their knees, or bump their heads, we are there to kiss it and make it
better – to hold them as they cry. Through
our constancy, they learn to venture further afield; learning independence, knowing that we will be there for them at the end of their adventure.
Then, when it is time for them to fledge, we watch, with a
mixture of love and longing – knowing that the wind they follow will be of
their own choosing – an expression of the independence and confidence we hope
to have helped nurture.
We so love their company that we would ask them to stay if
we could. But to keep them in the nest
at this point would be as stifling as if we had glued the egg closed, so it
could not hatch.
Now it’s our turn, as parents, to trust in object
permanence. Our part is to remain constant, as always,
so they know that wherever life takes them, open arms, a warm meal, and a made bed await them any time they wish to come home.
