Parents Love, Protect, and Correct
Imagine that you’re lost in the jungle. You can hear the growls and cries of animals that spell certain injury or death for you, and you are frightened.
A lamb wanders from a thicket and into your arms, where he sits in your lap and licks your face. Certainly this is a pleasant experience, to be loved by a lamb, but then from the dense growth walks a large lion, who steps to your side and rubs his head on your chest.
When he sits, you nestle against him and feel his hot but gentle breath on your cheek. You can feel the power in his muscles and his sense of confidence.
Although both animals are soft and comforting, with which do you feel safer? Ironically, you feel safer with the friendship of a large lion than you do with a lamb.
Often in life, we need the love and guidance of a lion, someone who has both the love and strength to help us feel safe. So do our children.
They don’t need us to be their buddies, soft and enabling. They need us to be lions, with the strength to love them, protect them, and even correct them. We must grow to become lions.
