Going through Facebook this morning, I found a quote posted by one of my friends: "Patience is not the ability to wait, but it’s the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting." Patience has never been one of my virtues, but it's something that my son has been teaching me this first year of his life. Especially when trying to get him to go to sleep. He's a very light sleeper and many times I have to hold him until he's deep in sleep before putting him down. That can take anywhere from a few minutes (on good nights) to a half hour (when he's had a nightmare.)
As I sit, holding him, I'll say to myself, "Patience. Savor this time. It'll be over before I know it." And I look down at him and memorize every bit of his face, his little hand as he sucks his thumb, his hair (we're getting his first hair cut soon since he turns one this month) and sometimes the emotions overwhelm me and I start to cry. It's all I can do to not sob somedays, not wanting to wake him. My hormones never have gone back to normal... not even vaguely close to what they were before the pregnancy.
He's growing so fast! He's so curious and is constantly getting into things. He refuses to learn what "No" means. He totally ignores me 99% of the time when I call him. And I know that's all normal. But it's frustrating and again, I need patience. And I take a step back and watch him grow his curiosity. Instead of trying to stop him from what he needs to learn not to do, I observe him learn and explore. I still stop him when he touches what can hurt him, but it's all Perspective. Some days I get caught up in trying to protect, when I should be encouraging his exploring and learning. That's when the Patience comes in.
And then there's the hand-me-a-toy-and-take-it-back game... now there's some patience in progress. And the pick-me-up-let-me-down-pick-me-up-again game. That one gets quite exhausting after a few minutes. He loves to hold my hands and "climb" up the front of the couch, like a mountain climber.
There are many more repetitive games that he's teaching me, but they all have the same outcome... me learning patience... or trying to, that is.
A Distinctively Eccentric Sundry of Life
It is all part of a great ingenious plan. You are developing patience now while he is adorable with things like the take the toy and pass it back game. Later when he is a teen and not quite so adorable, you'll need all the patience you're learning now as you play similar games that have greater consequences! ...I'm only sort of kidding!
ReplyDeleteKeep memorizing those little hands and that face. The joy of this love sustains you.
Yep, kids are definitely good at helping us to learn that one!! Love it today. .
ReplyDeleteI can relate to all these repetitive games teaching us patience. I felt like crying when you were describing watching him fall asleep and telling yourself to enjoy it because it passes so quickly. You are so right...I have to remind myself of the same thing
ReplyDeleteOh, I've been there! My girls both had colic, so I had to learn LOTS of patience. It's wonderful that you can recognize it WHILE you are going through it, not jsut in hindsight. You're obviously brighter than me! :)
ReplyDeleteSo precious. You took me back to when my own son, now 4 years old, was that small. It's hard, Mama, and it will always be hard. Those emotions and hormones don't ever taper off. We need them to remind us not to drive the car off the bridge when they're asking "What/Why/WHAT?" from the backseat for the thousandth time. Even when you feel like you have no patience at all, step back and (breathe) look at how patient you HAVE been. Us Mama's are stronger than we want to believe sometimes. Keep writing! It's good therapy. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you ladies, for visiting and for all your comments! I'm glad I was able to convey my feelings, you all picked up on how I've been feeling! This was a very touching post for me to write and I'm so glad to have put something up that others can really relate to.
ReplyDeleteThank you again, for your comments, I'm so glad I'm not the only mama who feels this way!
Hold them while you can...Amen!
ReplyDeleteYou said it, Michelle! I plan to! Thanks for stopping by Chickie!
ReplyDelete"Patience is not the ability to wait, but it’s the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting."
ReplyDeleteThis was JUST what I need to hear today. Thank you! I'm going to tweet it for you.
And thanks for stopping by my blog. :)
Heather,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you enjoyed my post! Thanks for the tweet and for visiting :o)