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I just came across a post in one of those ladies groups where a mother was asking others in the group how they deal with their kids messing their hair with sand on the beach how to clean it etc. Now, reading the replies, the mothers who advised to just let the kids be and not to magnify a situation caused by merely small particles of sand were very few in numbers in comparison to the mothers whining about the matter and making a big deal out of it, and that made me pause and think
Why is the majority of Egyptian mothers – not all because I hate to generalize and stereotype – so conscious about their kids being judged for just being kids and doing what kids normally do? Those little beings are all about playing, exploring, and wondering, and curiously getting in touch with everything around them.
Well yes kids can do all the kinds of mess, but that is the least to expect from a child trying to have fun at the beach after almost two years of devastating and nerve-wracking lockdown, let alone getting familiar with the whole e-learning concept. Yes, they will mess their hair with sand and stain their t-shirts and swimsuits with ice cream, but that's their own way of having fun, and no you do not have to make them feel conscious about every little thing they do.
As a mother, if you are worried how another mother will judge you for your kid's messy look because he or she was just trying to be happy, and accordingly project all that on your little kid, then you should take a moment to pause and rethink all that again.
You are building memories with your kids, memories that they will carry around for the rest of their lives; and those memories are what shape their personalities. So, be careful what memories you are leaving behind.
Both ways, and by the end of the day, those kids will go back home, take a nice shower, have their clothes tossed in the laundry basket, but it's totally your choice whether your kid goes to bed happy or guilt-tripped by your constant rebuke.
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