Former First Lady Michelle Obama expressed the importance of parents “stretching the caterpillar” by letting children take risks and fail.
In the latest episode of her Podcast “IMO” on Wednesday, Obama spoke about the desire of her daughters to have faith and independence while admitting that they could only learn those traits through judgment and error.
“I think many parents are afraid to watch that failure,” she said. “Thing is the hardest thing to do to see your children walk on a wall you knew it was there. And you told them not to enter it. Until they hit it and get a lump in their heads, they just won’t learn it. This is a painful thing for us.”
Still, she added, “If you keep your children out of that experience, a bump in your head, you are robbing them of their competence. They need to know that you can collide your head, and you can understand it. Go to the doctor. Put some ice. Don’t do it again.
“Let’s talk about this after the fact. But as you grow old, I don’t have to go through everything. I think it’s a constant exercise of the caterpillar, always mistake on the side of making it longer.”
Obama said she believed that some parents keep their children very long despite the “final work” was to teach them resistance.
She advised parents to start when their children are young with simple things like going to school herself.
“Take some risks because you can land softly here,” she noticed.
During an episode of her podcast last week, Obama also warned parents not to worry about being friends of their children.
“So many people are trying to be their children’s friends, and they think it makes you closer,” Obama said. “But let me tell you, I wasn’t a friend of my children. I love them deeply. He had respect. And, you know, for those of you trying to be friends with your children, our children love us as much as adults.
“In fact, the relationship, I think, is even closer because now they have won my friendship. Now we can be friends. Now, maybe you know something.”
#Michelle #Obama #final #work #parent #children #fail #build #resistance
Image Source : nypost.com