Life is Tough

When you are little and you want to grow up all you think about is getting to drive, staying up all night and never having anyone ever telling you what to do. But the reality is that it's a pain to have to drive yourself everywhere, staying up all night is overrated and you will always have someone telling you what to do. I look at Gabe and wonder when he will start to wish he was out of the house or when the first time will be when he tells me he doesn't like me. I do not dwell on these things, but they are there. Today we went to the beach and I had a great time just watching him play in the water and run after the birds. He was so amazed by the waves and the sand. Was I ever that way? I am sure I was at one time or another. How do we lose that amazement with the world? How do you explain to your child about death and sickness and hurt that happens all the time? What do I say the first time he comes to me with a problem? I want to tell him to stand up for himself and to not let others push him around, but to be gentle and considerate. And how in the world do I teach a boy that? That it is OKAY to cry and you cannot always be tough. That talking to someone about your troubles is sometimes the best way to solve them. I guess when the time comes I will know what to say but it scares the stuffing out of me to think of it.