BE IN ONE ANOTHER’S WORLDS ‘Femi Adekunle on Parenting
BE IN ONE ANOTHER’S WORLDS
‘Femi Adekunle on Parenting
Quite often we are too obsessed with the pessimistic side of life that we stifle the atmosphere for excitement in the home. The home is a theatre of activities where the interests of the parents and their children will, from time to time clash. This may weave a strain on the family, bring conflicts and keep the family from having fun to the maximum.
An example is a typical scenario in my family: as the children’s annual vacation from school approaches, my kids get excited about the holidays because there usually are a number of exciting activities that they look forward to. However, having the responsibility for funding their education, I think ahead and get busy worrying about their resumption and the multiple fees I will be paying. My wife gets busy thinking about how to keep them engaged for the holiday period as well as the endless trips to the market and malls for shopping, in preparation for their resumption.
On their own part, the kids keep busy about endless assignments and chores in the home and worry about not meeting the expectations of dad and mum. They feel guilty when they have fun, if at all they do.
Having rubbed minds with a lot of parents, this scenario is replicated in many homes. It’s natural. The parents get cranky and spoil the fun for the kids. There is a tendency that, a time which the entire family should spend catching fun and etching memories could be frittered away on competing anxieties. Such different strokes!
What is the solution? Simply get into one another’s worlds. The parents must ensure that they connect to the excitement frequency of their children. Be excited at what excites them. Be involved in their vacation fun. Similarly, let them share in your enthusiasm. Share your elation and excitement with them as well. If, as a family, you bear the burden of pain together and pull through it, it’s only square also that you share the benefits of joy and create memories. For a moment, allow the anxiety and the jitters to take the back stage while you maximise the fun. Being sensitive to one another’s sensibilities in the home is an emotional need that must be met.
” _Being sensitive to one another’s sensibilities in the home is an emotional need that must be met._ ”
‘Femi Adekunle, a Parenting and Family Coach, writes from Abuja, Nigeria.
Email: femi383@gmail.com
WhatsApp: 08055103512
23rd January, 2026
