Stay Vigilant, My Friends

I realized something this week.  Kids are weasels.  I mean that in the most loving way possible, but make no mistake; they can be sneaky little rodents.  After haranguing my sons into spending more than 10 seconds brushing their teeth it finally dawned on me that even great kids like my boys will get away with whatever they can, whenever they can.  They know teeth need to be brushed, they know it’s part of their daily routine since they started having a daily routine many years ago.  And yet there is slacking off whenever a watchful eye is focused elsewhere.

It doesn’t stop at chores, either.  I see it even when they are doing something they like.  There’s always a shortcut to be found, a corner to be cut.  Recently, while coaching a soccer game I noticed some of the team walking during a pre-game lap around the field.  Not all kids like running laps, but since it’s been part of our warm up since day one you’d think they would stay part of the team and hoof it.  Nope.  When I questioned them about why they walked the last half one of the boys actually said, “It looked like you were just talking to the other coach.”  WHAT!?!  That kid sat the first quarter.

The point is that as parents, there is an ever watchful attention that need be paid whenever the kiddies are given a task.  I don’t like it.  And I strive to teach my guys the independence and responsibility so that I feel comfortable not having to be the all seeing eye.  Thankfully they are learning the lesson well, but still have some lapses.

There is a saying, “Give them and inch and they’ll take a mile.”  This could not apply more to our young ones.  And I think it ties in a bit to a previous article of mine (Hammer Away, My Friends, 03/18/2011) about not being afraid to stay on top of the kids.  There are many reasons that I expect a lot from my kids.  Just one of them is that I have come to know that if I don’t, then the bar will continually slip.  Not just from my perspective, but from there’s as well.  As the parent, if I don’t establish lofty goals while teaching them why and how to do it themselves, who will?  The kids?  Hardly.  We hammer away at chores, goals, whatever, to an extent that may (to the hammeries) seem unattainable.  But in doing so we nudge them into getting to levels that we expect and that we know they can achieve.

Thankfully I am starting to see the fruits of my pestering labor.  The frequency of prodding and reminding does seem to be diminishing.  There are still plenty of areas in which I find that is a constant tug of war between how much is enough and how much they can get away with, but the light at the end of the tunnel is expanding.

So the moral of this tale is to keep up your pestering.  The kids will roll their eyes, and they will push back.  But in the long run, they’ll be better for it.  You will have the satisfaction that they know what it takes to get a job done, what it takes to do more than just expected, and what it takes to truly excel.