Glimmers of his younger self, and what he will become

I see the maturity coming out in him quite often.

He knows when one of his mates are having a bad time and asks them about it. He’ll ask a couple of times and they’ll either tell him to back off or fill him in on what’s up. He does back off, or listens sympatheticallly and keeps it to himself. I tell him that’s important, the keeping to yourself bit in situations like this. Nobody likes a tattle tale.

He asks me what’s life about? Wow, I say. That’s the million dollar question. Lots of people want to know the meaning of life. He asks what’s the point of getting up, getting ready, going to school, coming home, doing homework, eating dinner, then going to bed. Why do we do it? Good question I think. I often wonder the same thing when I’m stuck in the day to day drudge.

Then I see him trying to hold onto his childhood when he asks for a tickle every night. I never do it properly. I don’t make him laugh but he still wants me to do it.

He also loves the game of ‘Where’s JJ?’ He says this as he’s in bed hiding under the blankets. He remembers the first time I went into his bedroom asking where is JJ, and then pretending to be cross that he wasn’t in bed when of course he really was in bed trying to stay still and pretending not to be there.

I see the teenager that he’s not far from becoming. He’s stubborn. He sometimes has trouble reconciling the fact that I’m the parent and the disciplinarian. I’m learning loads too and it’s not easy. Not easy for either of us I suspect.

I came across this article – an exerpt from a book called Masterminds and Wingmen. It’s about:

In a changing world, proactive parenting can be the key to steering your child around the many impediments towards young adulthood. In “Masterminds and Wingmen,” Rosalind Wiseman helps parents navigate the inevitable tests that they and their sons will face.

It talks about what to do if they do something wrong. It talks about discipline and effective punishments. Note: grounding doesn’t work. I think I’ll buy it.

I like the fact that he’s strong-minded and has a mind of his own. I sometimes hate the fact that he’s strong-minded and has a mind of his own.

He’s as tall as me now. Soon I’ll be looking up to him. Sometimes I look up to him because he’s teaching me something. I like that.