Dominick's personality continues to emerge in way that amaze me. It seems like with each month as he matures he seems to feel all of his emotions more deeply. I wondered at first if this was a phase, a reaction to his past, or his unique personality. I am beginning to believe more and more that this is his unique design. He feels things so deeply it stirs my heart to see him experience it.
Joy: Today was a perfect example. He woke up from his nap (much needed after several day of not sleeping well) and was pretty happy. I then told him Grammy and Grampie would be coming and he was BURSTING with glee! He was jumping and running back and forth and yelling "Grammy-Grampie coming" repeatedly with a HUGE smile on his face. At times his joyful expression can frustrate me as we try to get him buckled in to go somewhere or dressed for a fun trip but lately I've been trying to appreciate his joy more. We've learned to be very careful at which times we share exciting news with him. The perfect time is when there is nothing that needs accomplished for about 20 min, the length of time for him to tone down his joy a few notches!
Sadness: When this baby is genuinely sad about something he delivers the most heart wrenching whales and tears that grip me. He actually doesn't feel this emotion often but when he does it is sure all that are around him feel it too.
Frustration: We may just have to skip this one for now, I might just get frustrated writing about how he expresses his frustrations!
Empathy: This one is new. In the last month or so I've seen this child become so wonderfully empathetic. He has such concern and tenderness for other when they are sad or hurt. He truly feels with the person in trouble or sadness. I have two examples. The first is when Nick left in the middle of dinner to help a friend who ran out of gas. Dom was so concerned he couldn't finish his dinner until I convinced him they would be okay and we prayed for them. The second is when Elmo's blankie gets ripped and Elmo is mad,Dominick is so sad for Elmo and what happened to his blanket.
I think it's really hard for Dom to feel so deeply. I think of my adult friends who share a similar spiritual gift and how challenging it is to feel emotions in such a deep almost spiritual way. When you are three it's hard to express any level of emotion in an appropriate way. So, my prayer is that I would gain some more empathy but specifically for my sweet boy. I pray that I would understand how deeply he is feeling things and be patient enough to teach him how to deal with those emotions in a way that is pleasing to the Lord.
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I really resonated with this post. My boys are so different from each other, with Benjamin experiencing such dramatic heights and depths in a matter of moments, and Solomon with a more melancholy propensity toward depths that, when they overtake him, are a real challenge to help him work through. It is a very deliberate work to help Solomon process emotions (particularly sadness) well, whereas the challenge with Benjamin is more keeping him functioning in real life when he would rather be off expressing all his emotions.
ReplyDeleteI personally find the age three much more challenging than age two. Three is SO EMOTIONAL. This has been true for both my sons and for all the three year olds I know. Three is very dramatic and emotional and self-exploratory, as they begin to feel life from a raw and independent place. It's full of beauty and shining moments, but man, it's been hard for me to parent through sometimes! ;)