I've always thought that I was the wiser one when it comes to parenting. I mean, mums generally spend more time with the kids as compared to the dads and are usually the ones who disciplines more regularly. But tonight, I was proven wrong and my heart is filled with thankfulness to God for giving me a husband like that.
We booked a family vacation to Penang in May/June way in advance, sometime last year. We would be taking a flight out on the first Saturday once school holidays start. But Joey's school recently sent us a memorandum to inform us of an outing to Johor Bahru for the whole cohort of Primary Four students and it would be happening on the day that we are scheduled to depart. Joey was naturally very disappointed because she wanted so badly to travel overseas with her friends and she would miss out a rare opportunity to bond with her friends.
My heart softened and I told her to make a decision whether she wanted to go for the one-day JB trip with her classmates or go to Penang with us. Sounds like a super democratic & understanding mum, right?
Joey thought about it and decided that she'd rather go JB with her friends and miss the 5-day Penang trip with us. I was fine with it because I wanted to respect her decision.
The husband, however, was dead against it.
That meant the girl would not be able to go JB in the end and we stick to our original plans. She sulked the whole evening.
I didn't want Joey to go to bed feeling upset. So I prayed to God for wisdom to explain the Daddy's seemingly tyrannical decision. Immediately, God spoke to me. God simply said that what I did was giving Joey the signal that it is okay and acceptable to choose friends over family! Oh gosh, why didn't I see it that way?
I quickly asked Joey into the room and explained, "Joey, I need you to understand why Daddy made that decision. I didn't understand it a while ago but now I do, and I think Daddy is very wise to decide this way. In life, our friends come and go but our family will always be with us. No matter what, our priority should always be family and friends should never become more important than family. The Penang trip was planned long ago for our family of 4 to spend time together. Without you, the 3 of us will be incomplete. We don't want to leave you out. You understand?"
Joey nodded and tears welled up her eyes. I knew she understood and it will be something that she'd remember for a long time.
I'd say the same myself. :)
