Double Entry Journal #4

The Struggle and Beauty of Being a Single Parent - YouTube

Quote #1: "You're going to get frustrated a little bit, but just try to keep doing everything with a smile, because remember these are your children."

Notes: I mentioned before that having a single parent could possibly be good for a child, and I wrote my poem on how single parents teach the ultimate life lesson-that life isn't easy. Children with both parents may only get to learn this early if there is a family crisis, or they'll only learn once they are out on their own. I don't totally agree with the idea of doing everything with a smile as a single parent, because your kids will end up feeling like it's not normal to feel anything but happy. They need to know that it's okay to show feelings other than happiness. On the other hand, doing most things with a smile will show your kids that you are strong enough to parent them, and it will give them the confidence to get through tough times in their lives.

Quote #2: "As a mom, I always wanted to protect him, and I also wanted to care for him. And then there was the other part that was maybe more the dad part, where I wanted his discipline to be a certain way."

Notes: This quote will help me find out how single mothers differ from single fathers. When I began the final part of my research, I couldn't find any answers so I decided to look at the differences between mothers and fathers, and come up with my own conclusion. Along with many other people, she believes that moms are more protective, and that dads are better at discipline. This seemed to be the most common answer during my research, but I did come across an article that said parents can adopt both maternal and paternal parenting styles. It is unrealistic to assume that all single parents are doing this, but if they are able to do this, is there really a difference between mothers and fathers besides gender?

Quote #3: "I feel the most important thing is to respect your child, to just let them be who they are."

Notes: It is quite common that single parents will not have as much time to spend with their children as two parents would. I don't think single parents would be able to respect their child as much as two parent families do. this is because they are busy with their jobs if they have one, or they are too worried about their situation that they don't consider how their child feels.

Quote #4: "if you're grown enough to have kids, you got to be grown enough to raise them."

Notes: I completely agree with this statement, and I believe that people having kids when they haven't matured enough is a huge problem. It's hard enough to keep yourself motivated when you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, so how to immature people expect to be able to raise kids? You have to be mature and able to work hard to raise your kids, but when you're a single parent, you have to work even harder. Being the only parent for your child gives you little to no room to mess up, which makes it near impossible because everyone makes mistakes.