Any mom seeing these videos of her son traveling the world would probably feel reassurance, pride…
And a jolt of new worry.
That is the lot even of the freest of Free-Range parents. As someone once said (and I’m mangling it): Courage is the thing with wet pants. It’s not that Free-Rangers don’t worry. It’s that we try to teach our kids how to navigate the world — starting with how to cross the street safely — and gradually let them go.
Except we don’t. We still worry to a greater or lesser extent AND we wave them goodbye. Some of them are kind enough to reassure us from the road, like this guy, Jonathan Kubben Quinonez:
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6 Comments
If we didn’t care we wouldn’t worry. Nothing wrong with worrying a little as long you don’t go overboard.
Definitely true. I am a naturally anxious person, whether by biology or experience, but have come to understand that that’s a personal problem. My problem not my kids, so while I do worry I try to push that aside when I make decisions. With my family, though they have not outright said it, they make comments that lead me to believe that they feel I’m uncaring or lazy and that’s just not the reason I make the decisions to allow my children freedom.
I dunno, I don’t want my kids to think I am that worried about them. One of my kids would get all worried herself if she thought I was worrying.
I do check in on facebook daily (if possible) when I’m traveling, to let my folks know I didn’t fall off the edge of the earth. 😛 They are not travelers and think I’m a little nuts sometimes. That said, I do not tell them the experiences that were actually scary (and there have been some!).
My 18 year old just took a road trip (7 hours) with his girlfriend and was gone for a week. A first for both of them. We use a video chat app called Marco Polo to keep in touch with family and friends, and it was cool that they could just record short videos for us along the way to show us what they were doing and give status reports. Did a lot to put our anxious minds at ease.
Although one day they went hiking and there was a series of videos where they were lost in the woods, or on a trail that seemed to go straight but ended up putting them back where they started without hitting another trail, or on a trail that suddenly ended even though the map showed it continuing. The final video, which was already recorded by the time I got to watch them, showed them back in the car. I told them I was glad I could see they were back in the car before I started watching the series because I’ve seen too many horror movies with that exact plot line! LOL
Coasterfreak–
Isn’t technology amazing? That’s great that your son was able to do that. 🙂
I agree with you, Amy. I tend toward anxiety and am very afraid of heights, so have been careful not to stop my kids doing things high up etc. One of mine loves climbing, one is medium and one isn’t particularly fussed.
I’ve already warned them that when they leave home they can catch the bus or plane themselves and I will come and visit them after a month with the rest of their gear, LOL! I hated leaving home and don’t want that rubbing off on them. As well, I think it helps with moving when it is YOUR adventure, and not your parents. The new city/campus becomes a place you can show them around, rather than somewhere they try to guide you.