Yes I admit it, I play Minecraft. My sons and I have always played something together, be it Legos, board games, or the occasional 3 player video game. Somehow our recent entertainment choices let us to diverge into our separate little cocoons.
Then they insisted that I join them in this game.
I love that I have teenagers who keep me up to date on the latest trends. They were the first to introduce me Gungdom style, dub step (although the sound of it is reminiscent of music I was listening to at their age. But it is their generation let them name their own genre.)
Christmas comes around and my sons decide I needed to get mine craft. We play, I mine, and I get overrun with zombie because apparently they spawn in dark places and I was just mining willy nilly without putting up torches. So my young heroes come in and banish those evil zombies and skeletons and shine light in the dark caverns of my world.
Some of my peers have wondered how I have such responsible, polite young men. (Their good manners go beyond saving old ladies from mine craft zombies, but you'll just have to take my word on it. )
I really did not know any specific HOW did my boys grow to be such great young men?!
Then I heard two words that triggered years of hard work I had forgot. I was trying to figure out the game, and one of my sons was coaching me how to craft stuff, so when I started figuring it out he said "good thinking." I did a double take and he said it again. The same words, years ago, I said to them to encourage their baby steps of progress and to teach them they are capable of thinking for themselves.
I didn't know what I was doing when I became a parent. All I knew is that I am the happiest in my life when I trust my own instincts, so I wanted to instill that in my kids.
The act of communicating my faith in their ability, so as to give them faith in their own judgment, has grown not just the original fruit of self confidence, but also friendship, recognition, safety, love, and on and ect.
Which leaves me wondering. There is so much to gain from paying attention to your kids, why would anyone not. Stress? Than let go of what your worrying about and play a game with your kids, it's not just a stress release your building a lifelong friendship. How you treat your kids today, is how you will be treated tomorrow.
