When I got my first car, my father told me, “Magalie, driving isn’t a right—it’s a privilege. A privilege comes with responsibilities, and a privilege comes at a cost. But it’s true—it’s a privilege that brings a lot of joy… ” My dad’s got common sense in spades… and I think he passed it on to me.
Well, even though it’s much easier to have children than to buy a car, being a parent is a privilege—an exceptional privilege that, unfortunately, isn’t granted to everyone, since many loving, generous, and caring couples aren’t able to have children “naturally.”
Parenting is a privilege that comes with heavy responsibilities. For many years, you must fulfill your children’s entire hierarchy of needs—physiological, safety, belonging, esteem, and self-actualization—while at the same time teaching them to fulfill those needs on their own when the time comes.
Parenting is a privilege that comes at a cost. You pay with your time, your sleep, your physical well-being, your relationship, your social life, and your career choices—all in the service of these little bundles of joy.
But, just like driving, it brings immense joy and satisfaction. In addition to a sense of personal fulfillment, self-sacrifice, constant pride, wonder, learning, and love… I don’t need to go into further detail about what love can do.
Need to brush up on the traffic rules? Go online, visit a driving school, or stop by the police station.
Need to brush up on your parenting skills? There’s a wide range of resources available here, too: online, in magazines, on TV, at CLSCs, through community organizations, in schools, at daycare centers, and over the phone—including the wonderful Ligne-Parents (ligneparents.com | 1-800-361-5085).
A driver’s license doesn’t give you every right… nor does being a parent.
And you—you who know but aren’t quite sure what to do, or who think it’s none of your business: you have a duty to speak up when someone gets behind the wheel without being fully capable of driving…
The same goes when it’s a parent.
And you, the one in charge—when a citizen is doing the duty you’ve asked of them, make sure the resources on the ground can take action in time… You know, just common sense.