Moving Up

I’m guessing this is tied into the fact that N will be moving up to squirts next year, but the coach has on several occasions asked if he can make some of the squirt practices. I think it would be good for him, but he is somewhat hesitant, much in the same way he’s reluctant to play homeschool hockey. On the one hand, I can’t say I blame him because it’s a whole new world, different from the one he’s comfortable and familiar with. On the other hand, I don’t want him to be afraid of new situations, especially ones that he can benefit from, not to mention enjoy. The positives outweigh the negatives by a large margin.

With this in mind, it brings back the old dilemma of how involved do you get as a parent. When I was a kid, my parents never took an active role in my social or recreational life, other than providing a ride. Now I find I want to encourage N to take some chances and break from his comfort zone, but also don’t want to be overbearing because it’s his thing. Also, it’s just a game, and he should have fun, but there are life lessons to be learned in having fun, as well.

I guess in the end the only thing to do is provide the opportunities and encouragement, and see what he does with it. I do think reluctance can lead to inaction and ultimately regret, based on my own personal experiences growing up. It begs the question, is it better to nudge someone gently into something you think they would enjoy, or should you just be completely hands off and let the cards fall as they may? Of course, being the overbearing parent that I am, I lean to the former, but I’m working on it.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to saganaga for the pic.