Smart Kids

You have to check this video out. :)

How often do parents think about how their kids might care for them in turn someday?  Larry and I joke about it with James.  Our parents mention it on occasion and aren't joking about it.  But I think we all like to look at parent dependence as being somewhat far in the future.

This video is a cute (b/c everything turned out fine) reminder that children are able to reciprocate some of that love and care parents model at a much younger age.  How beautiful that this little girl thinks to comfort her father instead of just talking to the guy at the 911 call center!  [I also love that she doesn't see her outfit as modest enough for visitors.]  A kid like that doesn't develop that poise all at once.  In a time of crisis, she's probably copying behavior that she's seen modeled time and again for minor emergencies and accidents.  We don't just end up with kids who desire to care for us in our old age (or any other time of need); we form them through every incident we respond to with love and every disruption we react to with calmness and creativity.

It gives me great hope (and a sense of awe) to view the daily interactions I have with my son (even though he's too young to consciously remember any of them) as formative to his future character.  Personality and personal choice definitely come into play as well; I can't absolutely determine his future (thank goodness!)  However, raising children is an art--an old and honored one.  And the result can more beautiful than any molded clay or colored canvas.