A friend recently posted the following as a comment on the entry entitled, "dancing in the dark." It advances the conversation in a way that I didn't want others to miss out on, just in case you don't read other people's comments. So, I am adding it as a guest post. Hope you enjoy and maybe you'll be provoked to respond with your own comments as well.
Rachel said:
Our interdependence, our inability to exist without mothers/fathers, our need to be watched is how life begins. Helpless babes cannot survive without being cared for(active witnessing)? As you note the need of a witness (caregiver), is indeed a God given basic instinct. An unattended child will disgrace his mother. The very act of being witnessed will provide the motivation to behave. It seems the corruption of this need is based in laziness. As a babysitter in college I used to think I had this incredible skill with children for I had very few problems with the children misbehaving. Now as a parent I understand why-I wasn't distracted. Now that I'm juggling reality and children I see when I'm not focused on interacting(active witnessing) is when bad behavior creeps in unnoticed. Witnessing is the essence of parenting,seeing/participating in the lives of our children. Giving them the peace that they are protected because someone is watching out for them. Someone wants front row in their life. It seems if parents took this reponsibility seriously, the transition to understanding the eternal eye of God would be natural. God wants to actively witness our lives--He wants to participate. When I draw near, He is always there. May we actively witness the lives of those we love and may we honor God by opening our lives to His active witness.
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