This tip has a couple of meanings and two opposing camps of parenting. The hope is to find a balance. The first camp is wishing your kids were perfect. First of all, I think I often fall into this trap of wanting them to obey all the time all the way. I want them to learn things quickly and follow through. I want them to have arrived. I am disappointed when I see them failing in things I’ve taught them a number of times. You can see my post on “They’re just Kids” to hear more about what I mean here and why I burst into tears by the pool in Hawaii. The point is, they’re not perfect. The flip side of this is the parents who think their kids can do no wrong. I was at the mall not too long ago, and I watched a kid come up and hit Corban. I gently said to the child, “Oh, let’s not hit please. His mom walked up behind me and said. “He wasn’t hitting.” Hmm…OK. I was shocked and taken aback. I have heard of parents going in to the principal’s office and defending the most ridiculous things. I recently heard of a mom that wrote to the principal of the school irate. They were mad because the child was in trouble for saying, “F$#* You!” The mom said, “She didn’t say that she said, “‘Shut the F$*% up,’ which a very different thing.” There are parents that will defend their child to the death. I am always for going to bat for your child and finding out the whole truth in a situation, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking your kids are the best one out there and can’t do any harm. I hate to give you the bad news that your kids aren’t perfect. Really, none of us are. It’s the battle of grace vs. works, and it would be nice to find the perfect balance of that in our parenting.
Thanks for the post. We experience that here in Singapore too. Teachers have a tough time when the parents think they’re kids are angels even though they have done wrong.