please don't help my kid



Just the other day, I was at the playground with Greta. There's a climbing wall that goes up to a platform where there are two slides. I helped her learn to place her feet on the footholds, then I went and sat down on the bench. Greta started and stopped, tried and failed and tried, and for the most part did an admirable job of getting up that wall.

A short while later, a very nice mom came up with her kid, and, while the kid played around, the mom helped Greta take each step and then boosted her to the very top, the whole while saying "Good job!" and "You're doing it!" and "Wow, you're really great!"

Phhhhht.

I was friendly to the mom, and she was friendly to me, but when she finally left Greta started at the bottom of that rock wall and grunted and pushed her way to the very top, at which point she raised her arms in triumph and said, "I did it myself!"

I said, "Yep, you did."

And now today I read this article. It's a complete statement of a parental philosophy. I feel some combination of thrill and relief that others feel the way I do.

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