February 18 -- Riley bought himself a kindle last week. He was in the middle of reading a book so I told him he had to finish that book before he started buying books on the kindle. Riley isn't exactly a huge reader so I am very curious to see where this will go. He used his own money -- the kid has more money than all of us -- to buy it so I hope it turns him into a stronger reader.
Meanwhile, as he slowly makes his way through Eragon, I bought the Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom on the kindle. I have read just the first couple of chapters and I am hooked. She is hysterical! I mean yes, some of the expectations she has for her kids are intense but really? I have absolutely nothing but respect for her -- she is raising her kids the way she wants to. But more importantly, she has an excellent understanding of her daughters' different personalities and adjusts her parenting style accordingly. And that is awesome. Many parents have no clue what makes their kids tick. We all run around judging each other about how to raise our kids. But everybody is different; every kid is different. There is no hard and fast method which works for all. Everybody has different upbringings which obviously color our parenting styles. But what Chua does is expect the best from her kids and she doesn't feel guilty about it!
I am considered a strict parent. When everyone in my neighborhood bought their boys air-soft guns last year, I stayed true to my rule and didn't buy Connor one. We became ostracized by the other parents because we were so strict about not letting him play with air-soft guns, especially after one of the kids went a little nuts and shot Connor in the back from about two feet away. (Needless to say, Connor doesn't really hang with the kids on the street anymore.) Yes. I am strict. But next to Amy Chua? I am a kitten. I allow B's. And playdates.
Chua gets away with her strictness because she cloaks it with her cultural heritage. I could have done that. My parents, German and Polish immigrants, were wicked strict. But I saw my oldest brother defiantly move in the complete opposite direction. So I got scared. I never wanted to be so strict that my kids would rise up in defiance and go the other way. I always played the balance game.
Again though, that was my gig. My choice, and Brian's choice. So far, I think my kids are okay. But there are definite, definite areas which are in desperate need of improvement. So I am really looking forward to finishing this book. On my son's kindle. While I force him to finish the hardcover novel he had started before he bought the kindle. Hmmmm. Sounds kind of strict. Who knows? Maybe I am a bit of a tiger mom after all.
No comments:
Post a Comment