Monday 3 January 2011

Happy 13th Birthday Cameron

Today Cameron turned 13 ... a teenager ... so does that mean we have to expect stroppy behaviour, answering back, being disrespectful and uncommunicative. A lot depends on our expectations, I’m not talking about unrealistic expectations and when they don’t materialise getting disappointed with our children. Cameron is a kind, caring and respectful boy turning into a young man why should that change because he’s a “teenager”. Most of the young adults I know do not fit into societies stereotypical “teenagers” ... they generally are a pleasure to be with.

A few years ago we attended the “Ancient Paths” seminar which talks about faith in the family covering relationships, generational curses & blessings and blessing our family through the ages. Things that have happened in our past, good and bad can affect who we are today and can be a help or a hindrance in our walk with God. That doesn’t mean blaming things that go wrong in our life on events from the past ... we have a choice in how we behave. We all want to do our best for our children but understanding we all make some mistakes. However we trust God to guide us - "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He and shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:6).

In many cultures they have a “coming of age” celebration and we wanted to do something for Cameron to celebrate who he is, strengthen the “father – son” bond between him and Paul. It is important for us that he knows how proud and blessed we are to have him as our son, and that God has great plans for his life. We weren’t keen on a Christian Bar Mitzvah (Bar Barakah), preferring something within the family. I then came across emails from other Christian families searching for similar ideas and one in particular resonated with us. It brings out and strengthens the father and son bond as they spend time deciding and doing 13 different tasks during Cameron's 13th year. The idea was put to Cameron and he seems keen. First thoughts are building something together, visiting places together and other activities like Cameron driving a tractor off road (I think Scotland’s the place for that).

We will keep you posted as to how it goes, if it’s a success hopefully we’ll do something similar with Fraser and I’ll do something with the girls.

(There's no photo of Cameron age 13 as we've lost our Camera)

1 comment:

Mirjam said...

That is really cool! Love the slide show! And the 13 things idea!

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