March 10, 2010

  •  Henri Nouwen is one of my favorite authors, he almost makes me want to become a Catholic!  I read out of a devotional almost every morning, called "Bread for the Journey".  A couple of days ago there was this post.....

    "Children are their parents guests.  They come into the space that has been created for them, stay for a while - fifteen, twenty, or twenty-five years - and leave again to create their own space.  Although parents speak about "our son" and "our daughter", their children are not their property.  In many ways children are strangers.  Parents have to come to know them, discover their strengths and their weaknesses, and guide them to maturity, allowing them to make their own decisions.

    The greatest gift parents can give their children is their love for each other.  Through that love they create an anxiety-free place for their children to grow, encouraging them to develop confidence in themselves and find their freedom to choose their own ways in life."

    Reading back over this I am struck by the phrase, "an anxiety-free place for children to grow."  What better way to raise a child than to make their home as anxiety free as possible.  There were a lot of things in my childhood that made me anxious, but being in my little home with my mother and father and siblings, I don't believe I ever felt anxious......it was a safe haven for me, and I wish that for every child growing up.  There should be one place in this world where they can be safe, anxious free, where love is freely given.........and that place should be "home."