Whenever I got hurt as a little kid, the first person I would always turn to was my mom. I knew she would give me just the right amount of attention and care without coddling me.
Whether it was just a scraped knee in preschool or a fractured spine in high school, I knew I could count on my parents to take my injury seriously while making sure I wasn't overreacting.
After all, that's what parents are there for! To help you when you get hurt and to provide comfort.
When Jaime Primak Sullivan's son got smacked in the face with a basketball during an elementary school game, she rushed over to see if he was OK.
While she was checking on her son, though, someone behind her made a snide remark about her parenting style. She tried to brush it off, but when it was still bothering her later, Jaime turned to Facebook to express her thoughts.
Photos: Facebook / Jaime Primak Sullivan
Jaime shared what happened on her Facebook page, where it got a lot of attention.
To date, it has gotten over 17,000 reactions and more than 3,500 shares.
Jaime wrote:
Last Saturday my 8 year old son Max was playing in his school basketball game.
Somewhere is the shuffle he was hit in the face with the ball. I saw it happen like it was slow motion.
I saw his eyes widen and then squint from the pain – he looked around trying to focus. I knew he was looking for me. “Max got hit in the face”, I said to my husband as I instinctively jumped up from the bleachers.
In that moment, I saw Max start to run around the court in my direction as the silent cry began. He couldn't catch his breath. My feet couldn't move fast enough. As soon as we connected, I got down on one knee.
“Catch your breath buddy.” He tilted his head back. “Max, breath. It’s okay.” He finally took a breath, and I wrapped my arms around him as he cried into my shoulder.
A voice came from behind me – "You need to stop babying that kid." My mind registered the sentiment, but I kept my focus on Max. I cleaned his face, and wiped his tears. Once I knew he was okay, i sent him back around the court to join his team on the bench.
I climbed back up on the bleachers. My hands shaking. I was so angry.
I fussed about it all the way home. My husband blew it off. "Who cares what they think?"
This notion that boys can never hurt, that they can never feel, is so damaging to them long term.
The belief that any signs or gestures of affection will somehow decrease their manhood – this pressure to always "man up" follows them into adulthood where they struggle to fully experience the broad scope of love and affection. The only emotion they healthily learn to express is happiness then we wonder why they are always chasing it.
They’re taught that sadness is weakness, that talking about their fears or short comings makes them less than.
They don't mourn properly. The struggle to grieve. They're afraid to cry. It all spills into the way they husband and father and I hate it.
Love is a verb. It is something you do. It is not the same as babying, coddling or spoiling. It is something my son deserves.
I will always love him when he is hurting and my prayer for him is that he is alway open to receiving love so he can love in return and keep that cycle going.
Jaime's message resonated with parents everywhere, who commended her for not hesitating to be there for her son.
Most importantly, it's a good reminder to people everywhere to let parents make their own parenting decisions. As long as their children are happy and healthy, don't get involved!
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