Parenting style.. all One family

    I was at a fair before the winter got so miserably cold, right here in Ontario, Canada. It was just a fair celebrating family day and everyone was out. People from different cultures and ethnicities each with a with a different parenting style came from 10 in the morning until late at night and there were stalls of all kinds, schools advertising, food, health and wellness, special items all kinds of things. Later in the evening, the groups performed cultural dances, while the beer spots had musicians playing Bob Marley, eighties oldies, Shania Twain and ….

It was on the street and as you can see there is a sense of space in Canada that is hard to define. You can spread out most of the time. And there were families from all over the world.

You know writing this book “I Like Me” here in Canada makes me realise how universal parenting really is. Parenting styles may different but there is family.  There are certain behaviors; certain relationships that we need to have if we are going to make that family work. These cut across cultures and ethnicities  I see it here in Canada.

I Like Me:  5 Easy Ways for Parents to Help Their Children Feel Awesome About Themselves

That’s why I started out with that bit about families from all over the world in “I Like Me”.

In the book “I like Me” strengthens the assumptions you already have about what you’re are doing as a parent.  At the same time it helps those who are not so comfortable with transitions and change and are fearful that their parenting style in their individual families, will not hold up.

Canada is made up of Aboriginal people, French-speaking people, English- speaking people and everyone else. I mean it. So settling in is not as easy as you might think. Parents have to stand strong and hold onto their culture if that is what they desire. Some parents suggest that it is easier to simply let go and just fall in line with whatever is around you. Especially for those with preschoolers this can be attractive route to follow. From what I have noticed, however, this can lead to challenges. Canada is a multicultural country with multicultural families. It does not use the melting-pot model where everyone gets absorbed into the dominant culture. Here difference and uniqueness is not alien and there is an attempt to develop a plural society where no culture sets itself over the other. A long way to go. Oh, such a long way to go.

But then there is no pressure on you to forget what your grandmother taught you or what you feel is important of your history. So I talk about this in “I Like Me” and suggest that your parenting style will adapt and change based on your personal beliefs. I think also you will come to agree with me when you think about what it is like in your corner of the globe when you think about what is important to you as you try to develop the self-confidence of your preschooler. We are all one family.