Follow Me

There are three tests of parenthood: putting a drawing on the fridge, hearing your parents’ words come out of your mouth, and seeing yourself in your kids. You realize pretty early in the parent experience that you are always being watched…even when you are doing something mundane. One day I heard preschool Keilana chastising another child for their “totally unacceptable behavior,” and I thought I was in an echo chamber. The first time I saw toddler Connor adjust his jeans with his wrists--a perfect miniature of his dad--I knew how closely we are observed by our little ones. Just when I think Addison is acting as neurotic and uptight as a person can possibly get, someone will remark how like me she is. And now Scarlett watches us like a little hawk, so what we do and say is suddenly infinitely more meaningful than it was just two years ago. We spent this past Saturday at the Pathway to Peace rally in a local park, listening to passionate speakers and trying to make collective sense of the world. At one point, everyone joined hands and called out individual wishes for humanity--everything from clean water to global peace. As I looked around at these good people, I felt I was giving my daughter a gift by introducing her to them. I read Richard Edwards’ Copy Me, Copycub, about a baby polar bear learning by following his mother’s footsteps, with a fervent prayer in my heart. Please, let us lead her well.


http://www.amazon.com/Copy-Me-Copycub-Richard-Edwards/dp/0060285702


http://www.jacketflap.com/persondetail.asp?person=130677