This-present-moment-is-only-temporary

This Present Moment is Only Temporary

Think back to when you were a kid and how long things seemed to last.  Do you remember your holiday break in December?  It seemed like it lasted a month or more when it was two weeks at the most.  For our youth, time passes very slowly, and growing up seems to take forever.  Even though they lack the experience needed for adulthood, they are ready to make their own choices, to move on with life.  In their rush of things, they overlook opportunities for growth and understanding if they don’t have our help with the life process.

When I am experiencing some difficulty or impatience in life, I like to remind myself that “This is only temporary, that you can’t get to where you need to go without the struggle.”  The struggle makes a difference for us in our lives, even though we don’t like it.  The process of pushing ourselves to understand something, learn how to cope with a difficult person, or work in a situation where we aren’t delighted, helps us develop perseverance and a resolution to get to a higher level of understanding.

When youth have troubles, they can easily make desperate decisions, sometimes life choice decisions.  Remind them that “Trouble has an expiration date,” much like the expiration date on a can of food.  We can still get there, wherever we decide, that is, despite obstacles, delays, poor choices and decisions, difficult people, defeat, and all of it.

Our faith in ourselves and some higher power, whatever your choice, will make the difference in reaching our destiny. Suppose we will only believe it and teach that belief to our kids, so strength will be there for them when they need it the most.  Teach your kids to pull out the telescope lens of life a bit and learn to look at the bigger picture, mainly when things are difficult.  This attitude or outlook is a skill that kids need and not something they absorb independently.

If trouble has an expiration date, we know that we will get through it much more successfully if we are only strong during those difficult moments, patient, and kind when we don’t know what to be.  The hallmark of a high-level person is to develop these traits:

Be kind, even when you don’t want to

Be patient with difficult people when you would like to tell them otherwise

See the good qualities in everyone, particularly those that don’t particularly appeal to you.

Speak only what will benefit others, even when you know they are wrong about something.

Still not convinced?  Click here for another take on this concept; This is Only Temporary – Dr. Rich Patterson (pattersonphd.com)

For my Faith-based friends, here is a link to bible verses about The World Being Temporary, 10 Bible verses about The World Being Temporary (knowing-jesus.com)

Try this with your kids, and let me know how the process worked for you below.

Yours for Better Parenting,

Rich