I took my own advice and let Prince parent my kids for a night
Apr 22, 2016, 3:20 PM
Singer Prince performs at the American Music Awards in Los Angeles, Jan. 28, 1985. (AP Photo/Doug Pizac)
(AP Photo/Doug Pizac)
On Thursday, the world stopped for a moment to remember, celebrate and honor Prince.
So it didn’t surprise me at all when I returned home and my kids paused from their world of teeth brushing and getting ready for bed to ask, “Who is this Prince guy everyone is talking about?”
I responded with, “Prince who? Prince Charles? Prince William? Wait, nothing happened to Prince Charming, right? Is Prince Ali Ababwa okay?”
They rolled their eyes and in unison said, “Dad! No, the guy that wears funny clothes that’s been on TV all day.”
Now, at this point I would have busted into characters with funny clothes from TV (Come on. I’m a dad. It’s what we do) but this was serious business.
Keep in mind that my family has an interesting way of dealing with death: We crack a lot of bad jokes.
Seriously, my grandmother’s final hours felt like amateur night at the Improv.
But this was a moment when these young children saw that one person can have this kind of an impact, not only on a family or community, but the entire nation.
Like I mentioned in my comments on Thursday, Prince let his music, his art, and his talent speak for him.
I thought, “Sounds good to me. I’ll take a break from parenting these kids right into years of therapy and let Prince do the talking.”
I quickly downloaded his best-of album, kicked up the volume and BOOM: Prince 101.
It became a Prince Pajama Jammie Jam! My daughter was crushing it. My son was pulling off moves that would make Prince proud (and me a bit concerned). Seriously, where is he learning this?
Anyway, the bottom line is that our reaction to events like this that shape the way our kids react, not to mention shaping their reactions to similar events later in life.
Oh, and I HIGHLY recommend the Prince Pajama Jammie Jam. It was so much fun!
