Picking Your Battles

So we're all familiar with this phrase.

To take the analogy further, I suppose we're supposed to focus more on the war than the battles.

What's funny is, I most often hear the phrase used when it comes to parenting. The wise older Mom says not to fight your second grader who wants to wear the green polka dot shirt with the purple plaid skirt and the bright yellow knee socks to school (or maybe that's not a good example this season, as the Today Show recently did a piece saying that mixing patterns is actually a good thing ). Or don't argue with your teenager about keeping his or her hair out of their face. You know what the "battle" is in your house...

But these aren't really the things that matter are they? We understand the analogy but...

Are we really comparing raising our children with war? Seems like an odd analogy to me. After all, wars bring don't bring joy. They don't sit in your lap and cuddle up close to you. They don't have that special yummy smell when they get out of the bath or shower. They don't hold your hand to cross the street or hug your legs when they see you crying. Wars don't ask you to tuck them in at night or want you to sing them a song. I've never once seen a war movie where the war giggled when I played peek-a-boo or, as they got older, tickled them in the tummy.

Parenting is hard...parents of those lost in war can attest to that. And parenting is something you must commit to with your whole heart, just as our soldiers do when they take up arms against enemies. But to say parenting is like war...

Just watch your sleeping child tonight and you'll know that analogy is wrong.