Credit for image to: mark_inou

Today, I was playing the popular drawing game “Draw Something.” My friend, Chris, drew the logo you see to the left and I sat there completely stumped. I’m not a cheater, so I didn’t immediately google it to find out what it meant. I did, however, yell to Leon and AJ in the other room. Leon thought it meant “anarchy.” AJ, however, yelled out “AVENGERS!”

That’s right. My kid knew the answer to something I didn’t.

At this time, it occurs to me that there is a time my child will likely, if he got the good genes from the pool, equal my intelligence or surpass it. I’ve seen parents who have dealt with this well and parents who have not. The parents who do not deal with this well react with anger, sarcasm, upset, depression and blame. They berate their kids and frequently tear down their accomplishments with criticism and the “never good enoughs.” They bring their kids into the school counselor or a private therapist and say that there is something wrong with the child instead of “I can’t understand my feelings about this and my own upset over feeling inadequacy and doubt.”

For me, I feel pride and excitement. Every stage AJ has met has been my favorite, but one of the best revelations was that, when I realized what his personality was, I would choose to be his friend independent of my relationship with him as family. He is just a really excellent person. As he gets older, I look forward to the things he will learn. Even more, I look forward to watching him grown intellectually.

I wonder what he’ll teach me tomorrow?