Raising a child is a bit like baking a cake. You pre-heat the oven. Gather your ingredients. Mix, fold, combine. Pour your batter into the pan with love, and place it into the oven to bake. You keep watching it as it bakes. You periodically check it with your fingertips or a toothpick. All cakes and ovens are different so it’s not an exact science figuring out when your cake is done. You don’t want to overbake or underbake it.
My son is 21 years old today. He’s not quite fully baked yet. There’s still a little batter on the toothpick. Fully baked is when a child is ready to stand out on his own and take care of himself. My son still lives with us. He is working but can’t support himself financially yet. I am working to help him get to the point where he is self-sufficient.
It’s not that I don’t want him with me forever. I do. But then again I don’t. Because I know that his becoming a man is a natural progression and I don’t want to stand in the way of that. Also, I won’t be here forever and when it is my time to die, I want him to be ready to stand alone.
So he’s got a few more years. That’s ok. I’ve got plenty of toothpicks.
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You have NOOOO idea how bad I am at baking! I really hope my parenting skills are a little better. I totally understand the need to let a child become independent…perhaps even learn to bake
Actually, I’m not the greatest baker either but I love it so it makes all the difference.