Halley's Comet vs. Shooting Stars

I don't want to raise my daughter to be a shooting star. I don't want to set her up to shine for a brief moment before falling back to earth, but I am fighting a culture that praises that bright shining light before moving on to the next star, hoping it will burn brighter.

Where will the stars of today be forty years from now, the ones our kids look up to and admire? The average football player is in the NFL for only 3.2 years and a pop star at the top of the charts now, may be hoping for a come back in five years when their fans have moved on to the next shining light.

I need to instill some long term thinking and planning with my child. So no more shooting star, I want my daughter to have a Halley's Comet Commitment. What I mean is, I want her to think about where she wants to be in the future and what it will take to get there. I do mean long-term future, the next time Halley's comet can be seen from earth will be 2061.That's 49 years from now.

Can you imagine your child in 49 years, the person they will have become, the challenges they will face, the things they will  have achieved? So I will tell her all about the comet and when it will return. What child doesn't want to watch a giant rock fly through the night sky? I think this will help set in her the idea of the future and long term goals, but here is the twist. I need to do a Halley's Comet Commitment too and the first thing I will put on my list is that I will be there with her to see the comet in body or spirit.

If I want my child to be committed to a long-term goal, she needs to know I am committed to her long term and that I will always be there for her either in her sight or in her heart. So this week, I will sit down with her and have 2 large poster boards. We will draw a really cool looking comet on top of our poster boards and write "Halley's Comet Commitment".

We will then list three things she and I want to be doing or have done by the time Halley's Comet returns. We will both sign the bottom and make a promise to look up at the night sky 49 years from now. I will tell her no matter where she is, I will be there with her as I am now, as I always will be.

 My daughter is a great child but she is going to be an incredible woman.

 Proverbs 22:6, "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it."

Comments

  1. great idea!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks stac. Is this something you would do with your children or do you have a different idea? Check back during the week because i will put photos of the posters so far and thanks again!

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