Spin

This from G to Eric this morning: "Accidentally, your alarm clock flew off the dresser, and then it broke, and Mommy put the battery back in, so it works again, but you need to reset it."

She was so deliberate about not accepting responsiblity for any of it. It all just happened. Yet, rather than hiding it, she carefully brought the alarm clock to our attention so that we could address the problem.

It reminds me that there is a difference between blame and ownership. And it's difficult for me to know where to draw that line sometimes. We want our kids to learn to own up to their responsibilities. But I worry that blame will not help them do that. I know that when I receive the criticism-laden blame, I have a harder time facing up to my part in whatever disaster requires my attention. Why should I expect anything different of people with fewer tools to cope with difficult situations?

It's just a reminder of what I can learn if I really listen to my kids, which can be hard considering they are often all yacking at me at the same time!