Down the Road
Art Print
Lewis, E. B.
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This morning the daughter was quite upset about something (until they learn to talk, it is hard to tell what the problem is... if there is one!), and was headed for a royal fit. Daddy firmly calmed her down, then compared what he did to learning to ride a bicycle:
"Parents are like the training wheels for the child. The child is headed for a crash without them... he doesn't know how to keep himself under control. Mommy and Daddy are there to keep the child in balance until he can learn to do it himself."
That is a nice way to think about it. Parents aren't the bad guys when they say "no," they are just the training wheels to protect and to teach their children to become well balanced people. Without Mommy and Daddy doing this, a child is led by his or her moods, which is a bad habit to take into adulthood.