A major Ā part of being a parent is to teach our children to navigate through life and to learn basic essential values such as honesty, empathy, integrity,Ā purity and many more. In order to do so we take opportunities to Ā teach lessons, Ā instil rules, talk about consequences and more often then we want to, we find ourselves having to execute those consequences. Ā I applaud every parent who spends the timeĀ and energy Ā getting their kids “sea-worthy”, because it is really hard work.
I have some more thoughts though. What happens if they blatantly lie? What happens when they succumb to teenage peer pressure? What happens if because of their own doing they find themselves in a “sinking ship”? You might say well, they will need to face the consequences and there will be some sort of lesson to be learnt out of that. Absolutely, Ā I agree!
But, here is something I ponder about – With all the focus on getting them ready to navigate the seas of life, have we thought of emergency procedures? Ā Have we equipped them with a life raft, with life jackets and have we taught our childrenĀ how to use them? Have we given them permission and know-how to shoot the
distressĀ flares in case of an emergency; and are we leaving the lighthouse lights on so that they can find Ā a safe harbour? Finally lets ask ourselves are WE, their parents and caregivers, a safe harbour to them. A place they can enterĀ in times of distress to assess the situation and make the necessary repairs? I am not sure if we give emergency procedures enough thought, are they not also essential tools in navigating the high seas of life?
Click here for an example of real lifeĀ Ā “distress flare” and how it can be used.