The Rewards of Parenting
Becoming a parent can be one of the most exciting times of anyone’s life, and it can also be one of the most stressful. Therefore, it is important for new parents to realize that along with all of the stress and hard work of parenting come countless and immeasurable rewards.
Parenting offers parents the ability to raise a new member of the global community, someone who has unlimited potential to make a difference in the future. There is nothing better than seeing your child grow to become a successful adult who cares about the world in which they live.
Sure, the future reward is amazing and almost unbelievable, but what about the everyday rewards of parenting? There is nothing more amazing than seeing a young child take his or her first steps, smile for the first time or offer someone a lick of their lollipop. Parenting is emotional, because sometimes even the toughest father cannot hold back the tears in his eyes when his baby says “dada” for the first time. The rewards of parenting are countless, and they are far more than priceless.
Learn from Your Children
Many parents do not realize when their children are young, just how much there is to be learned from parenting. Children are always learning, and therefore they make excellent teachers. Parents can learn patience from infants, laughter from toddlers and more than they ever wanted to know about alligators from kindergartners. When a parent begins to realize the value of what their children are teaching them, it makes parenting that much more exciting and rewarding.
Laugh with Your Children
Parenting is a serious endeavor, for sure. But, that does not mean that parenting cannot be fun as well. Some of the most memorable experiences that young children will recall as adults are the times when they laughed with their parents. It is ok to be silly and it is definitely more than ok to play with your kids. Getting dirty is the favorite past-time of most small children, and what would make it even more fun is to do it right along with their parents.
Parenting is about molding children into successful adults, but it is about building relationships and strengthening the bond between parent and child. There is no greater love than parenting, and there is nothing that even comes close to being as rewarding. This really is the job that keeps giving back, long after your responsibilities end.