{"id":1790,"date":"2017-06-09T10:49:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-09T17:49:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/?p=1790"},"modified":"2017-06-09T10:49:00","modified_gmt":"2017-06-09T17:49:00","slug":"picking-the-right-fruit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/?p=1790","title":{"rendered":"Picking the Right Fruit"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have reached that part of parenting where the waters have become murky. \u00a0The low hanging fruit has been successfully plucked and what is left requires strategy to reach. \u00a0My girls can \"\"<\/a>sleep through the night, use the potty, recite their address and phone number, and don’t bite (for the most part). \u00a0Considering they are now in middle school, these accomplishments may seem minor. \u00a0But trust me, at the time they were considered herculean tasks of extreme parenting. \u00a0Little did I know that even more daunting hurdles lay before us. \u00a0Now that I have successfully molded their external behaviors, I am left with the frightening task of working on their internal ones.<\/p>\n

I have to teach them to be a good person.<\/p>\n

Oh Lordy. \u00a0This fruit sits so high on the tree. \u00a0How do I even begin to reach it? \u00a0I thought I was doing well until Jada died. \u00a0Reflecting on her life got me thinking that maybe I’ve been aiming for the wrong fruit all along.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The joke in our house is that anything less than an “A” is a fail. \u00a0There is no such thing as optional\u00a0 “extra credit”. \u00a0And if a McLaughlin commits to something, there is no quitting half way through when things get tough. \u00a0Work hard. \u00a0Strive for more than average. \u00a0Follow through. \u00a0What delicious fruit, right? \u00a0Good grade. \u00a0Good education. \u00a0Good job. \u00a0Isn’t that the dream all parents have for their children? \u00a0Be someone. \u00a0Get out of your small pond and take over the next size up.<\/p>\n

And yet. \u00a0Is that really true? \u00a0Is greatness the answer? \u00a0Or is it maybe something much smaller and less flashy? Jada’s pond was tiny. \u00a0Our house, the mean streets of Sherwood, and whoever came to visit. \u00a0She didn’t really own much. \u00a0Two dog beds, a food bowl and a stream of chew toys that never lasted too long. \u00a0By conventional standards she was nothing. \u00a0Didn’t win a dog show, not certified by the AKC, never had a role on TV where she rescued someone from a well or rampaging cougar. \u00a0And yet, she made us whole. You want to lie on the sofa and binge watch Bosch? \u00a0Sounds great, I’m in. \u00a0Oh hello! \"\"<\/a>\u00a0Feeling a bit peckish are we? \u00a0Well, let me accompany you to the kitchen and see what we can find. \u00a0Are you heading for the door? \u00a0Can I come? \u00a0Can I? \u00a0Can I?<\/p>\n

Her accomplishments were much more subtle but, I would argue, just as amazing. \u00a0A companion, a happy presence, a partner in crime. \u00a0Would her life have been better if she had been “successful”? \u00a0If I had entered her in dog shows, driven her to events, groomed her to look perfect? \u00a0I doubt it. \u00a0Actually, I have no doubt. \u00a0I know. \u00a0Being a loving presence in our lives was the most powerful thing she could have done. \u00a0It was her shining accomplishment. \u00a0And if I can raise my girls to be as adventurous, companionable and joyful as she was, then I think I will have done well. \u00a0Lets aim for those fruits, shall we?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have reached that part of parenting where the waters have become murky. \u00a0The low hanging fruit has been successfully plucked and what is left requires strategy to reach. \u00a0My girls can sleep through the night, use the potty, recite their address and phone number, and don’t bite (for the most part). \u00a0Considering they are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1790","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-jada"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Kqhb-sS","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1790"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1812,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790\/revisions\/1812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1790"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1790"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chrissierocks.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}