Member-only story
Love Is Better Than Discipline
Growing together with our kids
Her cheeks blotchy and eyes swollen, she looks up at me and I shatter. My little girl looks to me for help but pushes me away. She runs after me, nipping at my heels, but shies away when I turn to comfort her. Her head is a mess, and she feels all emotions at the same time, as strongly as anyone ever has. She is angry and scared, sad and anxious.
Her eyes flutter like candle flames in a gale, thoughts flailing wildly. She feels alone in trying to figure out the cloudburst in her mind and the grey world around her. It will be a lifetime struggle for her as she tries to process her world.
She is perceptive and picks up on the slightest facial cue or body language, and she looks to me to learn if she has done wrong or if something is acceptable. This weighs on me heavily, but I can’t carry her burden forever. She has not yet learned to look inward to unburden herself. Until then, I will comfort her furiously.
She’s strong-willed, yet uncertain and timid.
