What If You Got The "Perfect" Baby?

_{Hasan Albari}

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So, the first featured topic for this week in the community is about babies taking their first steps, and a lot of us have put forth our content. We all had something to say and having gone through a lot of the posts, it is really interesting. Come on, is there anything that can be said about children that won’t be interesting and sweet?

That is just their nature, they are naturally cute and adorable. And we can’t help but want to be around them all the time. We are happy when they want us to carry them and when they shun us, we are understanding. Because they are babies.

Going through many of the posts got me thinking though. When parents talk about their babies (not just in this topic), they talk about their “flaws” and “strengths” with an equal amount of love. And by flaws, I mean how the baby cries a lot, how the baby can be demanding or always in need of supervision. Causing the parent to lose sleep. When talking about these things, it is the same way they would talk about how their baby easily falls asleep, how their baby doesn’t give them any trouble when bathing, or how their baby never loses their footwear.

There is nothing like the perfect person, this also means that there is no perfect baby. But, what if there could be? What difference would it make for you as a parent if your child had no “flaws” at all?

_Pixabay

Imagine a baby that never cried. I don’t mean seldom cried, I mean NEVER cried! When he was born, he came out looking cool and dapper, his tiny fingers giving the peace sign as he looked at the doctor about to spank his butt to elicit a cry. His look would be like, “don’t even think about it!”

And so, this baby is taken home and is just so perfect. He sleeps the moment his head touches the bed, and if he can’t sleep, he will quietly stay in his crib. When hungry, he would have a way of communicating with his mother. He doesn’t soil his diapers at all, because even as a baby he has control of his bowels for just long enough to let you know he’s pressed. The baby doesn’t play around, you place him on the floor and you can trust he will be there no matter how long you leave him. Even if you have to go out, he won’t cry and try to get you to take him along. He’s perfectly fine with you not around.

Are you getting the picture I’m trying to paint here? It sounds like right from the womb the baby is independent, right? Your first thought would probably be that it would make your job a hell of a lot easier. But, would you like this particular job to be easier?

I’m no parent, but I feel one of the weirdly scary things about babies is the fact that they would grow eventually. It’s like we want it to happen and on the other hand, we don’t want it. Because the older they get, the less and less they need us. Once they are of age and capable of taking care of themselves, if they choose to remain in the lives of their parents, it’s a matter of choice, not survival. At that time, the parents won’t be called for every little thing and only just to say hi.

_{Tatiana Syrikova}

But then, because childhood is limited and can only go on for so long, that makes it so much more valuable. For that period of time that the babies are solely dependent on us, we would make them happy and use the time to the best. Making memories and just being happy. That is why everything they do is a big deal.

I don’t know how I would feel if my baby never needed my help in anything. Like if from a very young age he was so independent that he would rather seek answers for himself than come to me for help. That would break me. Because however you look at it, most of the bonding between parents and their children happens when mistakes are made.

When the child falls, you teach them the value of always getting up. When they get into a fight, you teach them the value of having control. When they steal meat from the soup pot, you teach them about the dangers of greed. All these moments, scattered over their lifetime are what will count as the “upbringing”. But in the event that your child never makes mistakes, never needs advice, and is always so perfect, it will be as if they are basically raising themselves. Can you as a parent take pride in that?

Well, I’m not a parent, so I have no experience to talk about these things. I am only speaking based on how I’ve seen parents behave and it got this idea to cross my mind. Even though raising a child is stressful, it is tiring and would make you want to pull your hair, if you ask any one of them, they will happily go through all that again.

It is a process, they enjoy the work, they enjoy being there for their baby and the one thing they want the little one to know is that they would always have his back. No matter what!

That, my friends, is the life of a parent.

_{Josh Willink}

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_{Thank you for reading. I would love to get your ideas on this. Do you agree? Share your opinion in the comments section below. Till we meet in the next post.}

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