With the arrival of our little girl in our lives, my partner and I have reevaluated everything: our work schedules, our current jobs, the city where we live, and above all, our values.
I won’t really talk about values per se, but more about the legacy and the lessons I want to pass on to our daughter. We didn’t grow up in the same kind of family at all, nor under the same circumstances.
In my case, my parents worked very hard for an average salary. I don’t feel like I missed out on anything—I loved my childhood, my parties, my Christmases, and so on.
In his case, it’s quite the opposite. His parents worked hard too, but they had better jobs, so they earned better salaries. He didn’t really enjoy his childhood; he didn’t have many friends because he was shy.
The biggest conflict in values is about gifts and material things. Having lived through what I’ve lived through, I don’t believe at all that a baby, child, teenager, or adult should receive endless rewards or gifts. In my opinion, one birthday gift and one Christmas gift are enough. A little something for other holidays, and that’s it.
Teaching a child that they’re rewarded only when they succeed, I feel, is teaching them that mistakes are bad. When I passed exams, got good grades, or won academic awards, my parents would congratulate me, and that was more than enough for me.