Everyone should ask their parents– Ever think about the questions you never take time to ask your parents. Next time you are around the dinner table, here are four questions everyone should ask their parents that are meant to inspire meaningful conversation.
As a parent, what are some of the most important things you did, either with your family, your spouse, or solo?
Parents have many important jobs when raising kids, it’s hard to choose one which feels, “most important.” But this question raises an interesting point. It can be easy to lose sight of what matters most when you are running a household and engaged in child rearing. Everyone should ask their parents since this question can shed light on how you were raised and could offer helpful insight on raising your own children if you are a parent yourself.
What is something you wish you had done more of as a parent?
My mom often makes the comment that she would like to have the opportunity to go back in time and spend one day with each of her kids when we were young children. In the haze of working, running our household, and raising me and my siblings, my mother had very little opportunity to appreciate individual time with each of us. Looking back, she would have opted to fold one less load of laundry and spend 20 extra minutes coloring or playing Chutes and Ladders. It’s a simple reminder that the small things in life mean the most.
Game time is a great opportunity to talk about questions everyone should ask their parents!
What is something you wanted to impart on your children or a lesson you wanted them to learn from you?
Everyone should ask their parents about a lesson they wanted to pass down to their children (or grandchildren) My grandmother Marion and I talked over this question. Her answer surprised me a bit. Marion wanted to raise children who were, “good citizens.” In historical context, her answer made all the sense in the world. She raised her children during the 1950s, on the heels of WWII during a time when patriotism in our nation was at a high. Having brothers, friends and neighbors who served, Marion felt significant pride in her country and felt it important to pass this lesson along to her children. For me, this demonstrates how our own life experiences provide a backdrop to the lessons we pass along to our children.
What is one lesson your children taught you that you are grateful for?
This is an interesting one. Everyone should ask their parents about a lesson they learned from their children. I have talked this particular question over with my own mother and I appreciated her insights.
She felt that the greatest lesson she learned from her own children was to see a situation through another’s perspective. Four children come with four unique personalities. This ranged from my older brother who was always plotting the newest bike ramp he could build only to convince my younger, more trusting brother test it out. This often resulted in the need for bandages or ice. Or my baby brother who expected to have chicken nuggets for dinner each night and would protest when my mom prepared fish. Or, myself, the only girl. Who expected to be treated the same as all of her brothers and would not do any chores that they boys weren’t responsible for doing also!
This meant she had to shift, adjust, reconsider and see all sides of a situation. “Being a parent really required me to step outside myself and look at things through a different lens, ” she explained. “Especially as my children got older.” This really speaks to the notion that good parents are also willing learners.
