On Character building...

Many things about parenting don't make sense. There are a lot of fill-in-the-blanks. Yet even more things in childhood don't make sense. The older I get, the more it seems to come together.
When I think of some of the most annoying, tedious, arduous or loathsome things that I had to do/endure as a kid, what I remember most about them was the response to my complaining. Inevitably these various things were justified to me by saying that they "build character". Being a kid, did I know what that meant? Did I care? No. I was rather perplexed by the term, and rather more irked by the frequency of its use.
"Mom, why do I have to do the dishes?"
"Builds character."
"Mom, why do I have to clean the cat box?"
"Because it's your cat's poop. And it builds character."
"Why do I have to eat that?"
"Builds character."
 I could go on. You get the point, no matter which end of the character building scale you stand on.
Now I am beginning to look at it from another angle- from the perspective where I can see what all of that character development has turned into. Aha! It has value! Value that my 9 year old self could have never comprehended or appreciated (big surprise there).
I think back to the kayak trip I took with my mom when I was 12 and how I threw a fit because I didn't want to paddle anymore. Wait for it... my mom told me it built character. She also told me that if I didn't help paddle we would be stuck in the middle of the lake all day and become sun burned lobsters. At the time I resented that, but looking back on it now I probably would have done the same thing. 
Funny thing about becoming a parent. The puzzle pieces start falling into place, and ambiguous phrases that you hated hearing such as, "because I said so." (why?) " not now" (how about nnnooww?) and "maybe later" (is it later yet??) start to be come a part of your own
repertoire.
Sometimes there is just no answer, and sometimes a parent is too tired to think, let alone describe the non-existent dinner menu. The favorite response to "what are we having for dinner?" would either be a deadpan "poop." or "dog food." which never failed to rouse a laugh. Even a kid can get that hint.

So, every time you have a "teachable moment" that isn't necessarily fun, feel free to chalk it up to building character. The child(ren) in your life may grumble or complain, but you might both find yourselves laughing about it later.
But wait! There's more! Building character is also suitable for adults too! Is there a city person in your life who you'd like to take to the mountains? Plenty of character building opportunities there. Possibly even more, because we tall folks tend to be more set in our ways and perceived limitations than kids are. So grab a buddy and head for the hills. When they start saying that they can't hike because they are only used to sidewalks, just calmly tell them that it builds character. This can only strengthen (or dissolve) your friendship.

                                                     Exhibit A: dog building character.


 Go out and build some character today!

~Momrit