Adventures in Parenting

At 40-something years old this year, I’d say I can count on about 20 more good years ahead of me, 25 if I am lucky. Even if I live beyond 75, I don’t think I can be as productive as I have been my last 20 years. That’s just a fact of life.

What have I accomplished with my life? What will I leave behind for my children?

I will not have a large inheritance nor a Fortune 500 company to leave to my children.

My life is a sum total of my experiences, and that is the legacy I will leave behind.

Today is Day 29 of our 30 Days to Better Parenting Challenge. We are coming towards the end of our Challenge, and I want to leave you with this sobering thought.

I heard on a radio program of the story of a mother who was dying of cancer. She had a daughter only preschool age. Without much time to live, the mother began videotaping herself for her daughter to watch one each of her birthdays. She would record messages of what she wanted her daughter to know each year as she was growing up. Her 16th birthday and her 18th birthday were especially significant. The mother would talk to her about boys, how she should choose her spouse, how to handle herself on a date, and other issues that would face a teenager.

Fortunately, most of us are probably not in a situation like this mother. But there is a good lesson to be learned from her. Leaving something like a tape for our children to watch after we are gone can be a great legacy that money cannot buy. Even if we die at a ripe old age, your children or grandchildren will be able to have something from the generation before them for memories. It will help remind them of the values we’ve been trying to teach all the years we’ve been parenting our children.

Our task today on Day 29 of our Challenge is to begin some kind of method of leaving a part of yourself to your children.

There are many ways you can go about this. I have found journaling and blogging to suit me. For those who are more artistic, scrapbooking along with journaling next to the photos is great. With the advance in technology, it is now not difficult to videotape ourselves and save it digitally for our children to watch one day. If you have a good idea, please share it with us here.

A few nights ago, I had a dream of my mother. She passed away 7 years ago, but once in a while, I would dream of her. I wake up wishing that I could talk to her again. It would be so nice if she had left a journal that I can read her thoughts.

Maybe your children will one day wish they had something from you.

Photo by decor8