A girl once told me that she was mad at her parents.
Little did she know I had a lot of experience in that field.
Not as a parent, but someone who missed them.
I asked, “Why are you mad at them?” To which she replied
“My mother’s just always on my back about everything.”
The funny thing is I remember myself saying things like this.
I don’t anymore, and in that reality I now see how truly foolish
I once sounded.
Recognizing my position and taking a bold, firm stance I responded
“Your mother just cares a lot about you. Don’t get the wrong idea, just
know she’s looking out for you. Trust me, not having her around is
worse than anything your mom could ever say or do.”
My response caught her off guard – truthfully it surprised me too –
but for whatever reason I wanted to know what kind of reaction
my unexpected words would invoke. Who knows, maybeone person’s
trash is truly another’s treasure.
She looked at me quickly, disarmed, and said: “ You’re right.
I know she means well.”
“I don’t mean to act like I know the relationship between you
and your mother. It’s just, when I think about what’s valuable
the only consistent answer I find is family. You know, that group
of people who would do anything for you” I said.
Perhaps I didn’t need to tell my side of the story. Maybe I could
have agreed with her. “I know, sometimes parents can be the worst” was
a possible response. Simple. What’s the harm in agreeing with her? But
I couldn’t.
Love your parents. Ask them questions. Learn about their life and
listen. Trust me. •
