A few months back, we visited one of the most beautiful places in Maharashtra, called – Tapola, near Satara. It is also called as ‘Mini-Kashmir’ of Maharashtra. It is lush green with breathtaking mountain views, clear skies, and lovely topography! We went further inside and stayed in a village called ‘Akalpe.’ The best part is that it is un-touched and has minimum human intervention. To give you an indication – we stayed on the main road in one of the homestays. In 24 hours, only vehicle that passed was one state transport bus! Together we were all cherishing being in the lap of nature!

We were 3 couples with 2 children each; all aged between 3-9 years. We had taken two cars to travel from Pune. While returning, all the kids were in the car I was driving. Along sat my good friend Shanaya! She is very spiritually aligned and we always strike a great cord! The drive back was going to be great fun!

One moment caught my attention and still rings a bell whenever I am with my kids. Shanaya was having a conversation with her daughter Aarna. Aarna was updating Shanaya about one of her friends and the notorious act she engaged in. The moment Aarna completed her sentence, Shanaya burst out laughing! Seeing her laugh, all the other five kids laughed too. Looking at all of them, I couldn’t stop laughing either. We all had a hearty laugh!

Next day, as we were having breakfast, that laughter moment struck again. Out of nowhere – a thought occurred – “Amit, are you a SERIOUS PARENT?”

That thought kept lingering through the day. I kept reflecting on my interactions with kiddos at home. Some random thoughts were –

• Do I laugh often with my kids?
• Am I an instructional manual to them?
• Do I keep telling them – what is right and what is wrong?
• Am I a fault finder in my children always?
• Do I find it comfortable to let kids be kids?
• Am I a friend to them; or a stern parent?
• Do I take them along for some outings, treks, or some activities together?
• Am I spending quality time with them in complete attention, sans mobile?
• Do my kids feel okay to open their emotions easily?
• Am I behaving in a way that they can speak their mind freely, without worrying about my response?

Depending on the answers for the above, will determine whether or not you are a SERIOUS PARENT. Like Shanaya, if I can laugh with my children, then definitely I am not a serious parent. Children will never laugh when you are poking them or creating hassles for them. Only when you allow them to be them, will they be joyous with you.

I am not saying that we should not correct them, or guide them. If they are wrong, as parents it is our responsibility to use our maturity and show them how to handle situations. But more times should be happy times than miserable.

A miserable, unhappy, scared, anxious, non-interested, introvert, having inferiority complex, etc. kind of children are the ones who will never grow up to be achievers. Yes, they will trudge along in life. But they will never be able to completely realise their potentials.

Thanks to Shanaya for this lovely realization! A simple change of being a NON-SERIOUS parent can go a long way in building our child’s confidence and hence their future!

#Parenting #Tapola #Mini-Kashmir #Motivation #Laughter