As parents, most of us want to give the very best to our children.
It's only natural.
But, what constitutes the very best? Often, we think about material things.
A room to themselves, decorated to a kid's tastes, parties at home with clowns and ponies, and other idyllic diversions--all of these things come to mind.
And some want to give their kids a chance to further their educations, socking away some dough for college applications, tuition, room and board, and I'd better stop this sentence because the list never ends! All of these things are wonderful and if you can provide them, I tip my hat to you.
But now, looking back on my upbringing, where I seldom, if ever enjoyed these goodies, I realize I am no worse for their absence.
Through one means or another, I was given something even more valuable: a resilient personality.
Simply, put, I know how to fail and how to bounce back, often better than ever.
I didn't always realize this, and so I've suffered my share of fear of failure, the procrastination that comes with it, along with general anxiety.
But as long as I'm healthy, I come back, as many times as I need to.
I'm not sure what it takes to do it, but I think it makes sense to try to bestow this gift, of a resilient personality, on our kids.
After all, we can't guarantee they'll be uncontested successes, but how can they avoid it if they know how to bounce back from defeat, and they know they know how to do it?