Some things my son needs to know

Yesterday my little ‘Timan’ turned 3 1/2 years old. To me it seems as if his birth was just yesterday too, time has passed so quickly and he’s growing so fast. He’s clever and in a certain way he is even wise, way beyond his years. But then again he’s my little baby boy who wants to be pampered and cuddled and won’t start his day in preschool if he can’t cover me with ‘by by’-kisses at the door.

I know, before I can turn around he will be going to primary school, to secondary school, to advanced studies (maybe), to ???

And as every parent I want him to be prepared for the beautiful and sometimes cruel big wide world out there.

‘Timan’, I want you to know a couple of things I hope you will keep in mind on your path.

• Be a child now, run around, climb, play, paint, create … and even later in life be a creator, don’t lose your imagination.

• Explore and learn. Do this now and in the future. Don’t ever stop or your mind will get stuck somewhere. And don’t think you know it all. Nobody does, and nobody ever will.

• Play and be silly when you get the chance, work and be serious when it’s needed. There is always a time for everything.

• Travel, explore the world and see how other people are living. Find out with your own eyes about other cultures, other life-styles. Your way of life is not the only one that works. Pick the good things from what you see, skip the things you don’t like. But never judge other people because they lead a different life.

• In the same context: accept, don’t judge. Every person is different. Accept other opinions, discuss them if you like, but don’t judge a person because of what he or she thinks. Accept people as who they are and not for their looks.

• Sometimes you have to do something you don’t like to do in order to get another thing you really need or want. So do it quick, get over with it and have fun with the thing you are striving for. Just make sure nobody/nothing is getting hurt in the process.

• Take care of our nature. There is probably only one earth you will be living on, so don’t litter it, don’t help destroying it. You wouldn’t like others to deposit their trash in your house either.

• Be kind to animals and respect them as living beings. Every creature has a reason to live, even if we don’t always see the reason behind it. Every form of life has its own way to act and react to other living beings, respect this and you will be respected (and won’t get harmed).

• Treat others the way you want to be treated. Don’t do things you don’t want to be done to you.

• Your body is precious. It belongs to one person only and that is you! Make sure you take good care of it.

• Smile. Smile often. Smile at others and they will smile back at you. Smile at yourself and you will feel good.

• Believe in yourself and be proud of who you are. For me you are the most wonderful person on this earth, but I’m your Mommy. You have to believe this yourself and you’ll be surprised what you can achieve when you are convinced that you can do it. (Tilting your head up and pushing your chest out a little works wonders too. :-))

• You are my son and you will always be, no matter what and no matter where you are.

♥ I love you ♥

Your Mommy

What inspiration would you give your child once he or she is ready to fly?