Differentiate your concerns from those of your children. Adults think differently about life changes than children. Adults think in broad terms and are able to make long-term projections. Children primarily want to know how the change is going to affect them right now. Reassure your children about what will happen to them.
Children interpret experiences in terms of themselves.
She will make your meals and read you your stories. She will help you find clean clothes to wear. In dealing with inevitable life crises, you have the opportunity to teach your children about the healthy expression of feelings, about the positive aspects of change, and about the human capacity to persevere and continue loving through hard times. Dealing constructively with the disequilibrium caused by changes in the family, even stressful ones, can provide important lessons for children which they can call on throughout their lives. Copyright 1997 by Laura Davis and Janis Keyser.