I grew up in when Bill Cosby was launching his career.  I remember listening to his monologues on the hi-fi and watching him on “I Spy.”  He had some amazing insights into what it took to be a parent, even though his past has been called into question.  I prefer not looking at the dark side of anyone.  In his writings and recordings on parenting, he presents it in a lighthearted way, but his words also hold nuggets of truth.

“My childhood should have taught me lessons for my own fatherhood, but it didn’t because parenting can only be learned by people who have no children.“

There is some wisdom in that statement.  Everyone who hasn’t parented a child, is an expert.  They seem to have all the answers.  The only lessons to be learned are through experience.  It’s like on the job training.  Those who think they have all the answers may need to wait until they’ve had a few of their own children.

“No matter how calmly you try to referee, parenting will eventually produce bizarre behavior, and I’m not talking about the kids. Their behavior is always normal.“

When you’re blessed with more than one child, it becomes part of the job description to step in and let your children know the right way to settle disputes.  The books say to talk to them about their behavior at the time it’s happening, but when one has the other in a headlock, the time for reason flies out the window.

“Raising children is an incredibly hard and risky business in which no cumulative wisdom is gained: each generation repeats the mistakes the previous one made.“

It’s not easy being a parent.  Today men think nothing about fathering children, but when it’s time to actually doing the job, they run.  Instead of passing down what we’ve learned from our own parenting experience, we need to remain involved in the process.  That means changing diapers, cleaning up messes, laughing with your children, encouraging them, teaching them and being with them.  We all learn from our mistakes, but parenting is one of the greatest arenas for learning – especially by the parents!

One final  quote from Bill:

“Whenever your kids are out of control you can take comfort from the thought that even God’s omnipotence didn’t extend to His kids.”

God doesn’t make mistakes, but His kids do.  We can’t expect to be experts in all the nuances of parenting.  Every situation is different, each child unique.  All we can do is love them, give them beliefs they can count on, protect and provide for them, and pray that they will turn out OK.