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August 8, 2003
STUNTBABY
My son is awesome when it comes to his physical development. to the point that I call him "Stuntbaby" sometimes. From day one he has been intent on getting around in the world, always stretching the envelope of his world. Now at 20 months, he runs and climbs better than some three-year-olds we have met at the local park. I know that most of that is due to his own bravery, but I like to take a bit of credit.
At the park, we often see parents and grandparents hovering over their children, keeping them from learning how to climb up or down, helping them at every turn, whether or not the child requests it.
I, on the other hand, take extra care to put my son into situations where he has to exert himself, figure out how to move from one place to another, and do any number of new things that he really wants to do but hasn't had a chance to try.
I like this trait in him because it is something lacking in myself. I don't like to do anything new in front of people unless I know already how to do it. Such a mindset holds me back quite a bit in the world, I'm sure. I'll do anything I can to train this out of my son.
Sometimes he falls or fails at a thing, but he doesn't stop trying.
All the while I'm letting him stretch his wings, I'm always somewhere nearby. The more difficult the activity, the closer I am. Today, Jordan climbed the steel-and-chain rope ladder at the park by himself for the first time, but I was on the other side of the equipment at the time when I saw him start up. I shot off, knelt down quickly, crab-walked under the swinging bridge section, and made it to Jordan's side in about a second and a half. Once in place, however, I only stayed back for moral support, plus telling him what he needed to do to get to the top. His success was all his, and it was great. My feelings soared probably many times more than his did at his fete.
Parents have to let go sometime. Might as well start early.
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