Chances are, you have at some point wondered - why do bad things happen to people?
And when we try to find an answer, we find ourselves at a loss for words, baffled, confused, defeated.
How could there be a rational reason for the bad things in the world?
So what happens when your kids ask this question, especially when we haven't figured it out ourselves yet?
Our instinct as parents is to shield our kids from the "bad" - not talk about hard things in front of them, turn off the news, try to fix hard things and feelings for them.
I can relate and understand this urge.
I shield my kids from extreme things because of their age but what I don't shield them from is hard things that happen - disappointments, loss, illness loved ones might be going through, news of someone passing away....
I shield what I feel is not appropriate for their brains to process at this age but not because I want to project a life without hard moments.
No one ever tells us that our life will be smooth-sailing but somehow we expect it to be.
If your kids are like mine they like to know what to expect from their day even if it's something they don't like... they don't want to be surprised.
So why don't we take the same approach by giving them a heads up that hard things will happen in life.
We may not be able to completely explain why bad things happen in life but we can tell them that hard moments in life will:
Make them stronger
Help them learn about themselves
Redirect them to where they are meant to go
My daughter recently said "Momma you know sometimes good things come out of bad things... we just don't see it right away."
Yes, not gonna lie, had a major proud mom moment.
So as much as we would like a life where no problems occur, that is not how life is meant to be.
Our kids will face disappointment, hurt, go through grief, not get what they want BUT that is ok!
IMAGINE IF ALL OUR KIDS LEARNED THIS EARLIER THAN WE DID....
When I face hard moments in life:
I know I will get through it
I have the opportunity to grow and learn
I get to choose how to respond
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