A Lesson in Discipline

As I was trying to discipline my son the other day, he yelled at me, "I hate you!" I was taken back and just walked away. As I thought about this for the next couple of days, I wondered, How does a 3 year old know how to be so hurtful? I explained to him that I would never say that to him and that it really hurts my feelings that he said it to me. Then I had to look at what I am teaching him. Although I do not say I hate people, I do say that I hate certain things. "I hate this song, I hate my clothes, I hate my body." All things I'm sure he has heard me say. So, what am I teaching him; it's okay to hate things. Maybe we need to think about the small things we say in front of our children because they really are learning by example.