I remember as a child wondering what it would be like to be a grown-up. I wondered how my body would change and when. I also wondered what it would be like to be able to make decisions that to me as a child, seemed momentous, such as buying a car or a home. These any many other questions are all normal. But unfortunately parents often forget that their children have, what is to them, very serious questions that need answers. Parents often treat the questions as trivial or even silly. Some parents may even laugh out loud at a child when she asks something they think is ridiculous. Other parents may walk away, perhaps embarrassed to handle the subject being questioned, or maybe considering it unimportant and just looking to get on with their day.
As a psychologist I am very concerned about parental practices that are dismissive of kid’s questions. Most kids are asking sincere questions. These questions reflect their uncertainties about things that seem important to them. The correct answers not only quiet their anxieties and fears but give them the tools they need to move ahead in development. So here are some tips for you:
1. Assume any question from you child is not a joke and treat it with dignity. Answer as best you can and make sure to leave the door open that you can discuss that issue again.
2. If you can’t answer it at that moment tell her when you can get back to her with an answer and discussion.
3. If you are not the right person to answer the question, help her find the right person.
4. Give her examples from your own past as to how you successfully handled issues that come up as we grow and change.
5. Check back with her later or in the foreseeable future to see if she has more questions on a particular subject. That way you give her a secure feeling that she can ask more if she needs to.
Can you imagine my excitement when I came to my office last week and saw a package for me from China? I was thrilled just looking at the exotic stamps on the package. But I was much more thrilled when I opened the box and there were six copies of my book The Truth in the Chinese version. First of all, the book is beautiful from start to finish. The cover is white with a shading of pink into rose that I love. The words The Truth appear on the cover, as well as my name B.B. Holstein and of course the name of the publisher, XI’ An Jiaotong University Press. There is a picture of a notebook on the cover and the quotes from the Little Prince that I love, “All grownups were children first. (But few of them remember it.)” And then the second quote: “Grownups never understand anything by themselves, and it is exhausting for children to provide explanations over and over again.” 
Family Relationship Award of Excellence