Blonde curly hair and blue eyes…that is Max…he is choosing to wear his hair long these days and his hair is what I would call ultra cool…he also likes it…at the young age of 6 he is learning about standing out and being different enough to get noticed…he likes it…he likes the reaction he gets from people…and it is not always positive and kind…especially when it comes from older people set in there traditional ways…of boys have short hair and like the color blue…we raised Max to be an independent thinker…a child with strong will and an opinion…not always easy and I have questioned myself many times with this way of parenting…but as he has gotten older and is becoming comfortable in his own self…he is going to be just fine…today he went to school with his long blonde locks and toe shoes…I have to say he is what I dreamed of for a son…but my dream a few years ago were very different for him…I wanted him to be nice, popular, and athletic…and he is not that person…he is nice but not to nice I would describe him as cautious…he is not popular…he is just normal and not really wanting for more…he is happy by himself as in a crowd…he could be athletic but he has chosen to be academic and more of a rock climber type…a free thinker…he would much rather hike a mountain then play football…he would much rather learn something from the discovery channel then watch cartoons…if you ask him what his favorite show is it would be Dual Survivor, Infested, and Monster Bug Wars…he is a perfect brother for Maddie…at the park the other day when Maddie was having her surgery…a 10 or 11 year old girl called her brother the “r” word…we have talked to Max about this word…and he believes you should go to jail for saying it …he stood there…stared at her…Chad said he was frozen and spirit broken…and the brother of the girl said watch you language…Chad chimed in and said my daughter and his sister was born with Down syndrome….and that is not ok to say…she dropped her head and her color faded from her face and she apologized to Max…teachable moment for Max…and the other children…Max is called names for his long hair…referencing him to be a girl…he does not care much…but when it comes to his sister he does…it takes small instances to change people…I think that Max will have just as hard of a time in school with peer pressure and ignorance as Maddie will…Max is different then the rest…he is a lot like his dad…difficult at times and always wondering why and how come…Max will get lost in his own thoughts pondering the universe…Max will be out casted probably more then Maddie…why -because he chooses to have long hair and be a boy in Wyoming…because going to his Grandpa chicken farm or a museum is cooler then going to the a water park…Max is a difficult child…but he is perfect to be Maddie’s big brother…he will know when to step in and protect her….and when to sit back and watch her learn for herself…Max is sensitive when it comes to Maddie…these surgeries and hospital stays have been stressful for him…he is the forgotten child…when people call they ask about Maddie and how is she doing…never thinking about the little free spirit that wants to fix it…I hope that in the coming years Chad and I give Max the tools to prepare him for life being Maddie’s big brother…it is so much responsibly that he did not ask for…but like when she was born…he will love her no matter what…
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
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Amazing. Beautiful. He sounds *perfect!* This brought tears to my eyes this afternoon. <3 <3
ReplyDeleteOh, my Renee will never fit in either...but really who fits into the popular crowd? I think an individual "be who you are and be proud" is the best way to be...and it sounds like your Max is perfect. The perfect sibling for Maddie as well. What a moving post....
ReplyDeleteHe sounds just like my Carter. He was around 6 when he went with the long hair. I got a lot of comments, the best from my uncle saying that he is too young to choose his own hair style. Why can't he be who he is? Why must we all be exactly the same? What a boring world to live in!
ReplyDeleteSuch an amazing post Kim, I loved reading this. I believe people have an idea when they get pregnant of what they want their son or daughter to be...But the truth is our kids are born from day one, with a spirit entirely their own, and the best we can do for them is love them and support them and give them the tools needed to become the best they can possibly be. And this is what you are doing with both your kids. You're an excellent Mom.
ReplyDeleteLast year David came home from school pretty mad because a boy in his class (all muscle and no brain)said, "I would like you more if you didn't like science so much!" Sounds like a quote from nacho libre, right? His peers won't really respect the fact that he is playing the piano, loves the violin and aspires to be a brain surgeon. They don't care that he knows all the general names of the bones in the body and can write well above his age. They cringe in absolute disbelief that he actually goes to church and doesn't shop at the store on Sunday. They find it very odd, abnormal, over the top that he won't wear "I love boobies braclets", and that he doesn't have a...shhhh...cellphone of his own. Whatever will he do? I don't know, maybe he'll actually have...oh no...values, morals and standards for himself.
ReplyDeleteHey Max is the kinda guy I would love to hang with!
ReplyDeleteWhat a little sweetheart. It's so true, you have an idea of what your child might become but they are their own little person.
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