The Teaching and The Learning

My son and I are an awful lot alike.

Except when it comes to my teaching skills and his learning from those skills. It's not even that we are oil and water and just don't mix.

We are more like gasoline and a lit match. Explosive.

It could be that we are too much alike, and his frustration is my frustration and we feed off each other. Whatever it is, the only thing I successfully taught him was how to use the toilet like a big kid.

And that was one of the hardest experiences of my life.

His learning to drive is the second hardest, beating learning to tie his shoes and riding a bike by about a million gazillion points.

He is a good and cautious driver. He is safe and smart and attentive.

I am a terrible direction giver.

By mutual consent and an epic 'pull the car over, good I don't want to drive with you' fight, we have moved Dad into the lead driving instructor. Makes me a little sad, because it is proof that I am not as calm, cool and collected as I thought I was. It has become very apparent that I am none of those things when it comes to my kids. I am passionate about them in a wildly intense way.

To the point that driving around with that much intensity sitting next to you in the passenger seat might possible be stressful.

Sorry, my first born most like me child, but the good news is I have never gotten a speeding ticket or a fender bender. I like to think that you'll take after me in that way too!