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Parenting with Patience
There exist moments of parenting that test our human will and we fall short, no matter how much we "want" to be the perfect parent. We are all familiar with these moments and have experienced them in one form or another.
Example: Your dog starts the day by eating your wallet. You realize this may be a bad indicator of what the day will bring. Child #1 seems to have taken on a new cause in life, letting you know how and why everything you think or say is wrong. Child #2, at age 3, has decided that he must begin his training for the olympics in your home today. Let no chair go unturned, let no mother's heart beat at a regular pace. And of course, there's the regular everyday occurences that make parenting a challenge. So suffice it to say, your nerves are already raw by 10:00 a.m.
Suddenly, you remember your child's medical check up scheduled today....in 20 minutes. Packing the diaper bag, you realize you are out of diapers. Your husband/wife must have used the last one. Surely, you would have remembered to put them on the grocery list had it been you! While in the car, Child #3, who could not be convinced to touch his breakfast, announces his desperate hunger. When you arrive at the doctor's office, they inform you your insurance hasn't paid for the last three visits, and you will need to pay cash today...and silly you, you forgot to bring the dog. When you explain you'll have to go to the bank first, they tell you they can't hold the appointment that long. Now heading home after a wasted trip, you have two preschoolers in the back of the car screaming about the injustice of being denied a lollipop.
Once in your home, you take one look at your roof, and realize your living room is about to give way to the raging rainstorm outside. While you sit down and try to contemplate who exactly it is you call in this situation, your oldest child informs you that the youngest has flushed the hamster. You quickly weigh the 2 impending disasters, and opt for the hamster. Wading into the bathroom, you plunge with fury and somehow save the hamster's life, but have to beg and plead with the older child to take it from you, as it is wet with "toilet water" and is "truly grossing her out."
You mop up the bathroom and contract out the roof problem and as the day is coming to an end, it's apparent that your children have no sympathy for you or your day and they are certainly not trying to be of any help to you. And you are unaware that the day has had it's effects on them also. So, at the close of this day, the following acts take place simultaneously, while Child #3 is hitting the dog for no apparent reason, Child #1 decides he wants to rehash the ongoing argument about his desired tattoo, Child #2 then breaks into his most whiney rendition of "Mom(Dad)!..Mom(Dad)!...Mom(Dad)!"
First of all, don't try so hard to fight the chaos. Give in to it; roll with it. It can't win if you're not fighting it. Sometimes a lot of our frustration and annoyance comes from trying to prevent ourselves from feeling frustration and annoyance.
The feelings can also multiply by feeling so sorry for ourselves, that someone or something is "making" us frustrated or annoyed. Can I step outside of myself for just a moment and not view it so "personally"? Would I feel so sorry for someone else going through the same experience? Probably not.
If I want to admit that I'm not doing a very good job of not becoming frustrated, I can ask God for help. But first I must admit the truth to myself, that I am not doing a very good job at it. And when I ask for help, it can be as simple as the quick thought, "God, help me."
One more tried and true method of keeping my peace, is to take a deep breath and while doing so, envision breathing in the Spirit; I can't tell you how much more powerful that can be than just taking a "regular" deep breath. Try it, I think you'll like it.
