Three different forms of life waiting to experience the creative expression we call “living”.
The seed knows it’s just the beginning of life, a long journey ahead. It’s prepared to be under the soil. No matter how dark it is down under, it knows the soil is nutritious, and it has to be there until it’s time to feel the first ray of the magnificent fireball that lights up our world, the sun!
Before it pops out, it needs to grow its roots deep into the core of mother earth so that when the storms come, it can stand still, strong and grounded! The seed is patient, knowing that mother nature provides all it needs to grow. It has all the knowledge packed in it; that’s how the seed knows when to push through the soil and produce its first leaf, the flower, and the fruit. It also knows that it has all the potential to become the magnificent tree it’s destined to be. All it needs is light, air, water, a source of nutrition, space, optimal temperature, and time! No one tells it how to grow. No external control, pressure, or criticism is needed. Natural intelligence at its best!
The lion cub, a four-legged little fur beast, knows it’s born to be the king of the animal kingdom, and one day he will rule! But for now, being so innocent and playful, fully dependent on his mom to be fed.
The lioness knows exactly what to do, she is aware that life on earth is a rough ride, but that’s what it takes to be one with mother nature. She needs no one’s advice because she trusts and lets her natural instincts guide her. She knows it’s important for her cub to undergo all kinds of experiences in order to survive in the wild and become the king he is destined to be, but right now, he just needs to grow his little body stronger and develop those vital life skills. So she lets him master life, even allowing him to be exposed to potential danger. Of course, she is protecting him with her life until he is able to defend his life by himself.
The little cub being as playful as ever, growing little by little, free-spirited. Mom doesn’t yell, “don’t do that and this,” or “Why can’t you swim like a dolphin or fly like a swan”.
The human baby, A fragile, helpless, and innocent little miracle, opens her eyes for the first time in a world so big and noisy. She is confused, perhaps even overwhelmed. She cries, her first-ever human expression indicating that she is alive and has just arrived on the magic blue planet we call Earth!
Someone holds her, so warm and comforting. For the first time, she experiences unconditional love. Oh! What magic is Mother’s Love!
Mom is happy beyond her words. After nine months of sleepless nights, discomfort, hormones driving her almost crazy, nausea, back pain, anxiety, fear, happiness, excitement, and hope, her precious little miracle has arrived. She looks into her eyes; it’s love at first sight!
Dad peeps in, and he is speechless. “I will take a bullet for you, I will give you my heart if I had to, I will provide everything to keep you happy, comfortable, and safe”, he thinks, and means it!
For the baby, now she has a name, a religion, a race, a cast, and A FAMILY! She is growing up too fast. She is as active as her five senses. Thanks to her mind’s sponge-like capacity called Absorbent Mind, she is downloading everything from her surroundings with no filter. She is programming her subconscious mind effortlessly, which then becomes the foundation of her entire adulthood. This is a rollercoaster ride for her. Learning to walk, talk, eat, read, write, share, make friends, and basically how to be HUMAN! She is angry, frustrated, overjoyed, curious, and more! She throws tantrums, asks a million questions, and expresses, expresses, and expresses more! Being a human baby is not easy, after all!
Poor mom and dad are by now exhausted with more lack of sleep, stress, and the pressure of an overwhelming number of responsibilities because parenting is a lifetime commitment and an unpaid full-time job! They feel helpless, not good enough, and feel like they are significantly failing at parenting. On top of that, the world gives them uninvited advice creating unrealistic expectations of an image of “a perfect parent”.
They are trying the best they can, but they feel it’s not enough. No one prepared them for parenthood; they learned to parent by how they were parented. And what they don’t know is that their parents didn’t know what they were doing either. So, unfortunately, they are passing down generational conditions and trauma to their little child unconsciously. Just like the lioness, they, too, have natural parental instincts. They just need to tap into it. But they are bombarded with criticism and judgment instead. They are the right parent for their child; there’s no need for perfection. But sometimes, the frustration comes out as a yell or a punishment towards the child, saying NO! “Why can’t you be that or do this.”
At each different stage, a child needs a specific developmental approach. As the primary caregiver of a child, parents have the power to catalyze a child’s full potential. But it doesn’t have to be a never-ending struggle. While there are so many so-called “parenting methods, none of them seem to work. The reason is we can’t raise children with a ‘cookie cutter’ or ‘one fit all’ approach. We are all unique by DNA and so do our development.
Not every parent can tap into their innate parenting wisdom by themselves for many reasons. That’s where coaching becomes an enabler and a catalyzer for them to unlock their wisdom and find their authentic parenting voice. And I am privileged to have encountered how this unique approach transforms child-parent relationships to be deeply meaningful, intentional, and fruitful.
Over a decade of my experience working with parents who are educators, diplomats, healthcare professionals, stay-at-home parents, military officers, members of a royal family in the Gulf region, etc., regardless of their professional and social status, something they all had in common was that they wanted their children to have a completely different upbringing compared to the one they had! They knew they had to heal themselves to create a healed upbringing for their children. And what makes them different is the VISION they hold, knowing that where they are leading is where their children are heading.
We all aim for a better future, a better world for our children. And, at Ignite Global, our profound hope is to be that changemaker creating ripples of positivity in generations to come…
For now, I would like to end this note with the wise words of a true legend.
“The magic, the wonder, the mystery, and the innocence of a child’s heart are the seeds of creativity that will heal the world.” – Michael Jackson
With Grace and Gratitude,
