I was recently reminded once again of the importance of storytelling and, more specifically, of being a listener as a parent. A wise writer and preacher I was listening to was talking about how the significant events in our lives always need to be told. The births, deaths, accidents, birthdays—the stories of all these events need to be shared.
We’ve all experienced this with our children in one way or another. Perhaps the first time we experienced it was when telling the story of their birth or adoption. When this new child enters our story, it’s life-changing. We want to tell that story to anyone who will listen. There’s an innate need to tell the story and to have someone listen.
The same goes with our children. When they’re young, sometimes it’s them telling us the story of the bug they found or how they scraped their knee on the playground. When they’re older, it’s the story of a fight with a friend or the goal they scored in the soccer game. The thing about these stories is that they’re not made up, of course, they’re real, but they need to be heard by someone who cares.
The act of telling the story is important, but the hearing is almost even more important. Whether it be a story of joy or sadness, trauma or fun, children really need us to hear their stories.
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