I want my children to grow up loving others, being kind to all. I pray they succeed, but not in man's view of being successful. 

We all want what's best for our children, don't we?  I remember as my children were toddlers, then moving into grade school, I was so proud, and so happy that they would have a better life than I did.  That their education would be something along the lines of their aptitudes, math and science, and that is still good advice, to follow what you are good at.  And I went through some very difficult and painful teen years with them, wondering what "d done wrong, and how I could change things.  One child is severely bipolar, as am I, but I didn't know it when I was getting pregnant.  I just thought I had depression from time to time.  That child is in grad school with a history degree, something I never would have encouraged her to do, and I look back, and realize she was in pain, because no one understood her true desires.  In that aspect, I had failed.  And the other, graduating high school with a 4.0, and a long distance runner, thought he'd get even with his father, an engineer, by not going on to school.  Now, at 34, his back and body are showing the effects of long years of construction work, simply because he wanted to get even with his father, the one who should have had the strongest relationship with him.  So I guess my point here is that I've come to a relationship with both, learned to feel intense pride, admitted they aren't perfect and boy, I sure wasn't either.  Whatever paths call out to our children, we have to be there to love them and feel pride.  Yes, I'd do things differently, but I can't.  All I can do is tell them I love them on a daily basis.

@QuantumStorm@xanga - Crap! I am doing this all wrong....