As parents, we often try to teach our children about good days and bad days and how to deal with them. Each and every one of us has our own way of dealing with day to day stuff and we carve out our life experiences to teach them the same. When I heard back how they understood and perceived it, it made me smile.
Today was one of my low days and I sat down pondering over coffee and kids start having a conversation around me to cheer me up. I started laughing by the end of it – realizing how perceptions get created!
My advice to kids when they were around 5 years old
There will always be ups and downs in life. When you have a good day, live in the moment and enjoy the day. Whenever you have a bad day or a sad day, look forward to the next day, it would bring in some pleasantness and hope! Something nice will happen and you can hope for it and look forward to it. Both good and bad days come with something that you can learn from!
This is how I would have imagined what I said 🙂
How they seem to have understood it
If Monday was a good day, Tuesday will be a bad day, Wednesday will be good again, Thursday will be bad, Friday will be good and so on. Every alternate day will be good, and every other alternate day will be bad. How bad or good a day turns out to be depends on how good or bad the previous day has been – the fall will be that steep.
Nowadays it feels different
Then they went to say how their understanding and expectation weaves into reality these days. I could not help but laugh 🙂 I still ended up seeing the curve tending to normalcy (me and my optimism) and they were laughing and asking – Have we hit rockbottom yet, or are we still traveling down?
It is funny how one’s perspectives are interpreted, understood and related to by another person in such a different way.
Their advice
Some days you will be optimistic, and some days it is okay to be pessimistic. Sometimes it is okay to go out of your way and help others, and some other days it is okay for you to curl up on the couch and spend time with yourself doing things that make you happy. Some days you need to tell yourself that you do not have to be strong, and cry it out. It is okay. Some days you need to not advice us, but be open to taking our advice 🙂
And, I started laughing and feeling better 🙂 Yes… I continue to learn, and my sources are all around me.