Conversations
Sharing
A place to share ideas and look for new ones, raise concerns and respond to those of others. Hopefully conversations will evolve.
Gretchen’s Story
20-something years ago, we went on a two-week family vacation out west. We spent the first week with my large extended family, then flew to Seattle, rented a van, and embarked on a 7-day drive around Washington state. It was a rare time for just the five of us to be...
Answering that of God
How do you respond to that of God in your child? A question that was not asked of me as a parent when my children were growing up. I wonder if it should have been asked especially if I was to follow Fox’s suggestion that I “answer that of God in every” person? The...
Are we setting expectations?
I’d never really thought about how my statements could be setting expectations for my four-year-old grandson until I heard a mother announce to the other parents at the playground,“We’re grouchy today. We got up too early.” She...
Listening Without Interpreting
A friend told me the following story twenty years after it had occurred. She found him, she told me, her thirteen year old son, in his room sobbing. Here he was just back from his two month summer visit with his Dad. He’d seemed happy to be back and had had little to...
Quakers and Anger
I am genuinely curious about how Quakers understand anger given their testimony on peace. Response from Harriet Heath I don’t know of a Quaker position on anger. There certainly has been a history in some Quaker families that one should not be angry. Parents in my...
Recognizing Feelings in Oneself and Others
Recognizing my own feelings: Until I was in my mid-forty’s I tried to hide my feelings of anger and sadness. My face was set in a tight smile, sometimes with my teeth clenched. My voice was well modulated and my words carefully and clearly spoken. I looked the...
Asking Questions
As we travel down the parenting path, so many questions come up. Does living simply imply we should have no screens? How can I control my children so we can have a peaceful home? Ask your quesitons. Keep checking back for responses and respond to others. Maybe a discussion will develop.
How can I stop yelling?
How can we stop from yelling? Something happens. I yell. The kids yell back. Then Alex comes in and yells at us to stop yelling. It is loud noise and I hate it.
My child is talking about death. Is this normal?
My daughter (7) has recently been making morbid comments and seems to find them funny at times. For example, the family dog was taking a car ride with us and she commented that “if we were in a car wreck, Dog is going to die” (because the dog wasn’t buckled in) Most...
Sibling Relationships
I want my children to like each other. My brother and I have no contact. Is this just the way siblings are or can I do something to help them be friends? My son is four and my daughter 1. Submitted by: Becky Response from Harriet Heath There is no guarantee that your...
Developing Themes
As you reflect on your parenting experiences, has a theme developed that was meaningful and that you would like to share? Has an approach to a parenting situation proved helpful? Here is a place to share it and learn what others think.
The Testimonies: Reflections on
Howard Brinton concluded: 'The most important consideration is not the right action in itself but a right inward state out of which right action will arise. Given the right inward state, right action is inevitable.' That right action was to be seen by living the...
The Peace Testimony
“Andy won’t share.” “Bobby won’t share.” The two-year-olds screamed at each other while each held firmly to one of the ends of the truck. Mom could pull the toy from the hands saying, “If you boys can’t play nicely with the truck we’ll just put it up on the shelf for...
Screens, Screens, Everywhere Screens
What Is a Parent To Do? They’re in the television and the IPod. They’re in the computer and the car. They’re in the smart phone and maybe even the dumb phone. Screens are everywhere. Before COV-19 the advice was, “Turn them off.” And we Quakers tended to turn our...