There are for sure many aspects of live (and philosophy) that I would like to transfer to our son. But in the moment three aspects play an important role in my current state of father-ship:
a) A german phrase, which is relatively easy to translate: “Communicating humans can be helped” (-> Sprechenden Menschen kann geholfen werden)
b) Don’t account what you miss – but be aware of what you have (what is here and now), as a resource. In other words: It is not bad to be aware of “what’s missing”. But at first start with the question: What is my initial situation? What do I have? What is the potential of the context? Do not be a master of personal “deficit management” (German: “Mangelverwaltung”). Because then one probably will end up in a loop of mental stasis, anxiety and frustration. Hope can’t be bought, but one can “earn” it by clever reflection.
c) Failing is inevitable. Perfection is abstract. It is very rare to see ones “stars/idols” failing in “public”. But they failed – gazillions times. So especially as a kid it is easy to assume that these “idols” never failed. The learning process is not necessarily obvious. Therefore keep on asking yourself : Have I learned from my “mistakes”? Aka: By “unterstanding” the limits one could gain the power to overcome these limits. It is not guaranteed that one might achieve ones goals. but it is more likely to get closer – or even push the boundaries of ones personal system.
#intellectualintegrity #intelektuelleaufrichtigkeit #courage #learning #forgiveness #meaning