Keep Going...
Hey Dads and Moms!!
It's been a while since I've had a chance to actually sit down and blog. Between the kids and work I actually have a lot to talk about but never enough time to blog about it. So I'm glad you're still taking time to check on me.
We're at the time in parenting when the oldest is going through middle school and making all sort of questionable decisions. He's trying to fit in with his friends at school and letting his grades slide. He's talking in class during working periods and then falling behind with homework. Opportunities to catch up, like during his lunch break, he chooses to play basketball with his friends. We're dealing with a menagerie of issues that include, but not limited to ADHD and teen adolescence. It's not making the household a fun place to be in due to all the discussions about behavior and emails back and fourth with his teachers about his grades. Not a good time at all...
The wife was at the local Dollar Tree and picked up a book for the boy to read. "One More Step" by Bonner Paddock. Not knowing too much about the book except the author had cerebral palsy and conquered climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and completing an Iron Man Race, we had him read it and write a book report on it. He had to answer 2 questions.
- Why did we want him to read it?
- How did it relate to him?
He drafted a few different versions of his essay and he went for the "low hanging fruit" each time. After the second draft I took some time to talk to him about the book. After a lengthy conversation with him, it turns he has more in common with the author than originally thought. Here is his current draft...
It's riddled with spelling errors and improper grammar, much like this blog, but it went from 3/4 a page to 3 pages. Now we've been down this path before where we have had him read character building books and have him write an essay on it, and still haven't seen any positive changes. But after having him read this book and then after I read his essay I see a little glint of hope.......hopefully.
I share this story to say that no matter how difficult it gets to teach these kids, you never know when they're going to have that "Ah ha" moment. We've had such a tough time with the 13 yo recently, that sometimes I just want to throw up my hands and say forget it! But I have to keep telling myself, "If you're going through hell, keep going", "Never, Never, Never Give up", Quotes I've seen many times by Winston Churchill. So I share my affirmations with you fellow parents. We have the hardest job but it's the most important and the most rewarding.
~Sean Flac 2.0
#KeepGoing #OneMoreStep #BonnerPaddock #Inspiration #dadlife