One of the reasons why I've been running this blog is that I love the idea of going into parenthood with at least partially open eyes. Although I love my parents dearly, I felt that they didn't have much by way of an overall strategy when it came to parenting. A lot of what they did was fairly reactive, and I think its because they'd never thought out and discussed the complexities of parenting beforehand. By default, they mostly just parented on bias and habit. It was what it was, but I want to take it to the next level.
Don't get me wrong; I realize that when you're in the thick of things it's probably way more difficult to retain any kind of deep philosophy, let alone your sanity. However, I do believe that pondering the imponderables as much as possible creates habits of mind that are more likely to lead to constructive, positive reactions to parenting situations. I'm hoping that by sharing these ideas and reflections I'll increase both my own and others' possible parenting repertoires. I suppose that's a big reason why I'm posting all this publicly, rather than just writing it down in my journal.
To work on becoming a more conscious parent, I like to explore and share my thoughts on the philosophical side of parenting. While this musing may not seem to build much in the way of practical knowledge, I feel that exploring these big questions helps provide a consistent framework for knowing what to do when particular situations arise. I also like to have lots of conversations about parenting issues. I ask my friends things like, "What's your approach to technology going to be?" I'm always fascinated to find out how others are going to approach the big questions of parenting.
In a way, I just think of this blog as a way of focusing on big cultural issues through a particular lens. In all honesty, I don't think kids are a topic in their own right. They gain their existence as a result of a huge variety of cultural contexts, everything from mommy groups to dietary issues to health insurance to career searches to attitudes towards love. In truth, I think all people exist as the centre of a wide variety of discussions and practices. Not only do these discussions help define us: they also allow us to feel like a part of something much larger than isolated existences.
Don't get me wrong; I realize that when you're in the thick of things it's probably way more difficult to retain any kind of deep philosophy, let alone your sanity. However, I do believe that pondering the imponderables as much as possible creates habits of mind that are more likely to lead to constructive, positive reactions to parenting situations. I'm hoping that by sharing these ideas and reflections I'll increase both my own and others' possible parenting repertoires. I suppose that's a big reason why I'm posting all this publicly, rather than just writing it down in my journal.
To work on becoming a more conscious parent, I like to explore and share my thoughts on the philosophical side of parenting. While this musing may not seem to build much in the way of practical knowledge, I feel that exploring these big questions helps provide a consistent framework for knowing what to do when particular situations arise. I also like to have lots of conversations about parenting issues. I ask my friends things like, "What's your approach to technology going to be?" I'm always fascinated to find out how others are going to approach the big questions of parenting.
In a way, I just think of this blog as a way of focusing on big cultural issues through a particular lens. In all honesty, I don't think kids are a topic in their own right. They gain their existence as a result of a huge variety of cultural contexts, everything from mommy groups to dietary issues to health insurance to career searches to attitudes towards love. In truth, I think all people exist as the centre of a wide variety of discussions and practices. Not only do these discussions help define us: they also allow us to feel like a part of something much larger than isolated existences.
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