Letting Go When We Foster Wonder In Our Kids

Several weeks ago, I wrote about letting kids be kids and not crushing those things they find amazing (like Red Lobster) and about giving them some hope when innocence is lost (when the Easter Bunny loses its magic).

In the spirit of this brilliant approach to parenting, I have had to watch my son transform his mountain bike (his first 26″ bike which he actually trail rides with) into…well…a thing of wonder.

Photo by author

Photo by author

A little bit about me.  Depending on who you ask, I have “mild” Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. But doesn’t everyone put their CDs in alphabetical order, by genre, with the CD in each case in proper alignment?

I didn’t think so.

I also have an aversion to bumper stickers or anything you might put on a vehicle to give other drivers information about you.  Just in case they do not like my alma mater, my politics, my clubs, or the school my kid is an honor student at.

Plus, those bumper stickers may permanently stick…a thought which freaks me out.

Apparently, my son does not share my idiosyncrasies.

He takes great pride in what he and his stepbrothers did to his bike.  All the way down to the air freshener on the handlebars.

Photo by author

Photo by author

I had to fight the impulse to ask him how he was going to get his bike back to normal, and realize he had a blast decorating it and loves riding around the neighborhood, honking the horn and blinding drivers with the reflection off his wheels.

I do not know how long this will last, but I have learned to take a deep breath and not worry about how he will get his bike back to normal.  I just need to enjoy watching him enjoy it.

Unless he puts on a bumper sticker.

Have you let your kid get creative despite the fact the original “canvas” may never be the same again?

2 thoughts on “Letting Go When We Foster Wonder In Our Kids

  1. Pingback: Fatherhood on Friday: A Trifecta of Deadlines

  2. Pingback: Fatherhood on Friday: A Trifecta of Deadlines | Dad 2.0 Summit

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