iPad dissatisfaction

In our house the iPad is the most desired reward (well, after lollies). Recently I gave Mckenzie this reward for doing the dishes. McKenzie did a great job and was totally motivated in completing the task, so she ended up getting almost 50 minutes. After her turn the other two children in the household also requested some time and being in a good mood I obliged giving them 10 minutes each. Mckenzie noticing this the next day requested some extra time, so not thinking I caved and gave her some extra time.

Two or three days later she appeared at the end of our bed one morning requesting extra time for her reward, stating the case that her siblings got time on the ipad for nothing, and so deserved even more time to set this injustice right! So in my infinite wisdom and wanting to win the best father in the world award, I pulled open the bible (on the iPad of course) and found the reference to the workers in the vineyard story (Matt 18:20-25). I paraphsed it for her so that it had its best chance of her understanding.... Now I would love to say that this strategy lead to Mckenzie seeing the errors of her way, falling down at her fathers Feet, recognising his great wisdom and his superior biblical knowledge ...nope, not at all! it only fuelled the extreme injustice that she felt, storming out of the bedroom slamming doors and calling me a poopy head (the ultimate insult in our family).

This interation with my eldest daughter gave me great insight to how some feel about the current issue of gay marriage, it may not take anything away from their own relationship, but giving others the same legal rights or access to the institution of marriage just seems very unfair to some. It also explains the anxiety many feel with their life, a life that has more comfort and material wealth than a 15th century king would have had and why? Well it has nothing to do with what we have but more about what others around us have that we may not, it could be professional success, fame, assets, good looks, cars, holidays abroad and the list goes on...

What can we do about this? You must understand the cause of your upset/anxiety before executing any strategy and this is the job of an experienced councillor or a proved program. Once you know what's behind the symptom, only then can any strategy be successful. Feel free to contact me alexm@psmm.co.nz for any guidance on whom you should council.

 

Posted with Blogsy