Of all my kids, I found it hardest to write a thankful post about my eldest. Partly because she was rather rebellious during the last 4 years in secondary school, and partly because she speaks what she feels and doesn’t mince her words. Sometimes she comes across as being too brutally honest for me to accept, and sometimes, speaking to her is like speaking to a porcupine.
During those difficult years, I usually left her room bordering between feeling like I have failed as a parent and wondering why I had such an insolent child.
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| Comfort on big sis’s shoulder |
This year, I can see a change in her. She is more caring towards her younger siblings, and family has taken on a greater significance for her.
Throughout the teenage years, friends were very important to her, and she wasn’t very close to the other kids. She was busy with school and her own schedule and when we went out as a family, she found them too noisy and pesky.
She is more sensible now and I can go to her for her opinions which are well deliberated and usually sound. In fact, I love our chats as I gain a different perspective on issues from her youthful viewpoint.
We’ve found that she has a soft spot for the vulnerable, such as the elderly, disabled children, or abandoned animals. Once, she saw a stray dog which looked rather sickly, and she packed some food and went hunting for the dog.
Most of all, I still appreciate her objectivity, for voicing out what she believes in, and thankfully, she has learnt to moderate her comments while keeping her honesty.
Thankful… for the hub’s cooking
Thankful… for #3 in so many ways
Thankful… for sister-in-law #1
Thankful… for all who helped create this blog
Thankful… for #4’s resilience and forgiveness
Thankful… for blogging perks
Thankful… for my husband’s extended family
Thankful… for #2, the dream baby
Thankful… for school
Thankful… for my parents
Thankful… that #3’s surgery went well
Thankful… for the teenagers and the toddler