KNOW When To Say NO!

    It has been my experience as a parent of adult-children and I would imagine for ANY parents who are thus to frequently feel the ‘pain and suffering’ of our progeny when they are faced with such, as well as to share in the happy-moments that they know in life. Naturally, it is easier and much simpler to join in on the positive and appreciable times; heck...who DOESN’T love the ‘pleasant’ and special events that occur in life, right? It’s a bit different when we watch our children face adversity, when we witness them ‘struggling’ with some of life’s-issues, and when we want nothing more than to ‘rescue’ them and know that we cannot; or, more important, still, OUGHT not, for in doing so, we prevent them from ‘learning’ their own life-lesson(s). Over the years I have gotten MUCH better at being able to ‘detach’, in a loving way, from these occasional incidences and instances that my own offspring must face. I do so for MYSELF as well as for them; because I have realized, over the years, the importance of knowing when to take a ‘step-back’ and have learned, to a great degree, where to ‘draw the line in the sand’, so to speak, in order to keep MY sanity. Believe me, it’s NOT an easy thing to do; but it’s an IMPORTANT component of learning to live my own life. None of this is to suggest that ‘if and when’ my sons require assistance, in ways that I CAN offer it to them, that I don’t give it...I do, of course; I’m, simply, attempting to recognize the difference between what my TRUE responsibility is to both my ‘guys’ and myself and to do what serves us ALL the best. In writing these words, this AM, I am reminded of some other words which are widely known and that touch upon this topic quite adeptly; these the words contained in the ‘Serenity Prayer’. ‘ God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.’ Just Prayin’...