β β A Single Sentence from a Season Ahead
The Question: β"What did you guys do to create the lasting connectedness you have with your kids?" β βMy Reply: βWhatever we did, we always did it together. β Truths From TreesSometimes there are great parenting lessons that are hidden inside other family groups. For instance, animal families have their own special names. Lions: A Pride π¦ In the world of arboriculture (ok, that's just a fancy word for trees) we call a group either a Grove or Forest π²π²π²π² There are a surprising number of great lessons that power-decade parents can learn from a family of trees. Slow vs Fast GrowthMost young tree saplings spend the early decades of life under the shade of their mother tree's canopy. Limited sunlight means that they grow slowly. Slow growth, of course, leads to hard, dense, and strong wood. Something entirely different happens if you plant a tree by itself out in an open field. Free from the shade of bigger trees, the sapling gorges itself on sunlight and grows too fast. Fast growth leads to soft, airy wood that doesn't have time to become dense. Soft, airy wood is a breeding ground for fungus, disease, and a much shorter life overall. A tree that grows fast also rots quickly and therefore never has a chance to grow old. Another invaluable effect of the grove for a young sapling is the root system. An old, dense, and sturdy tree has years of roots that run deep into the ground. A slow-growing tree in a grove has the benefit of intertwined roots that will benefit it for decades as it grows taller. An isolated tree, planted by itself, not only grows too quickly but lacks any of the supporting underground structures. 7 Parent Take-AwaysSo what can we learn from a family of trees that can affect your parenting for the next decade? Here are a few things we learned in our home...
Do you consider your home to be a "raise them slowly" kind of family? In what ways have you provided shade or kept your kids from growing up too quickly? I'd love to hear if you'd reply back and let me know! FYI: Mom and Dad, you can always read old newsletters right here! β |
Helping propel moms & dads of 3 to 13 year-olds to invest in their power-decade of parenting. Father of 3 teenagers and pastor of 20 years turned digital writer.
Family Friday Newsletter - 3.5 min read by: Finley Robinson A Single Sentence from a Season Ahead Showing up as a parent, even for half-credit, secretly gets the whole effect you were hoping for. Build Their Confidence At various times during our power-decade of parenting, my wife or I said one of the following statements to our kids. Somewhere between 3-13, our kids heard us say these and dozens of other statements a lot like it... "Hey, sweetie, I want you to go to the window and order the...
Family Friday Newsletter - 3.5 min read by: Finley Robinson A Single Sentence from a Season Ahead Administering discipline to our kids in a protective and corrective way should also be done in a connective way. πΆπΌ Wait, You're Pregnant? It was exactly 21 years ago this week when my wife and I found out some surprising news. It was the summer of 2004 and our oldest daughter was 6 months old at the time. My wife walked in with a baby in one hand and a positive pregnancy test in the other. I...
Family Friday Newsletter - 1 min read by: Finley Robinson A Single Sentence from a Season Ahead Grace-filled homes recognize that individual growth can take years and leave room for "the imperfect and never finished." Stories Shape Futures Kids gravitate towards great stories. So many of them follow The Heroes Journey. Classics like Moana or Toy Story are legendary kids movies because of how well they accomplish this. Stories in the lives of your kids, end up shaping and molding them. Stories...