The Forest

As a young wild heart,

children need guidance, love, acceptance.

They need security, they need to know they come first.

I'm sure being a child feels no different than being lost in a forrest with no map or no direction, the emotions making them feel like they are spinning in circles endlessly trying to find a calm peace. To them you are that place.

I remember that feeling of dependency being a child, but also the freedom of spirit. I wanted to wander in the toy aisle and see all the toys feeling enamored by every one I could possibly bring home, until that moment I couldn't find my mom or dad and suddenly the whole store was spinning and every stranger scarier and nothing mattered anymore but finding my parents. I remember that feeling of relief when I heard my name over the intercom and the tears I cried from feeling so embarrassed but also remembering that the fear was over.

I think being a parent is no different, from the beginning we find ourselves lost in that forrest of fear and uncertainty wondering who will we become; will we be the best version of ourselves, and will we make our child proud? Will they feel the same emotions we did as a kid, how can we prevent some of the trauma? The answer is that life is a journey of pain and happiness, we can't prevent painful experiences but we can help our children to cope with them, we can be a light house and a beacon a compass and a sense of direction but ultimately their gleaming souls will find their own way. We cannot determine their destiny or their future, but we can give them the tools to find theirs. Maybe theirs will be different than ours but that is okay.

You hear many people say "Oh kids have it easy" and sure maybe they have the freedoms of being able to explore and discover, maybe they have the joys we've lost or combatted in the storms and trials of life, but they have a future ahead and it may not be an easy one and this is the time where they can learn to see a beauty in the world and help us to see the world through their eyes. They didn't chose life, we chose for them and with that comes the responsibility of giving them a life as joyful and adventurous as possible, it comes with a hope that they won't let go of the clasp of their inner child and they won't cling to cynicism as an escape of their fears but will embrace the fears with a deep breath and excitement that their destiny is calling so that no matter where they may be in that forrest, they are not afraid to find their own direction and to be free to go where their soul feels purpose and to find the love that they can call home.

My hopes for my children is that they may experience the depth of love while an all encompassing freedom to be who they are; to be able to be lost in a moment of absolute wildness, and to love just as fiercely as one without restraint. I hope they may find joy in the simple things for as long as possible and never be to afraid to open their hearts. I hope broken hearts do not cause them to create trenches or walls but rather bridges to other opportunities and love. I hope they know whose arms they can run to in fear or pain and that they always know just how immensely they are loved and believed in.