Where is the magic wand I was supposed to get when the children and grandchildren were born that would protect them from job loss or heartache or illness? I don't mean the B on the report card, but cancer, divorce, moving into a friend's basement. When grandparenting is not so grand and I realize that begin emotionally involved did not end with toilet training or the wedding day!
The hardest thing we who have amassed volumes of experience is to not give advice unless it is asked for. We have time and access to the internet to look up symptoms and lawyers, but the timing of those helpful words is critical. And the right time to mention things is when it is needed and wanted. There is no way we can really know what is going on with the doctor or the settlement negotiations or even the second grade teacher.
What we can do is move prayer up the list of our activities! Don't save prayer for when all else fails. Instead make it the default first step. Pray not only for the situation and the person, but for strength to listen and listen and listen with complete confidence that, having done our best, we can trust the next generation to make the right decision for that moment in their lives. And if things change and there is a different decision, we will support that.
Keep the support generous and communications open. A year from now, two years from now....
The hardest thing we who have amassed volumes of experience is to not give advice unless it is asked for. We have time and access to the internet to look up symptoms and lawyers, but the timing of those helpful words is critical. And the right time to mention things is when it is needed and wanted. There is no way we can really know what is going on with the doctor or the settlement negotiations or even the second grade teacher.
What we can do is move prayer up the list of our activities! Don't save prayer for when all else fails. Instead make it the default first step. Pray not only for the situation and the person, but for strength to listen and listen and listen with complete confidence that, having done our best, we can trust the next generation to make the right decision for that moment in their lives. And if things change and there is a different decision, we will support that.
Keep the support generous and communications open. A year from now, two years from now....
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