I am the father of three daughters in their teens and twenties, which is why this video from TV star Stephen Colbert caught my attention. It’s produced by Tavi Gevinson’s Rookie magazine, for its “Ask a Grown” advice series, featuring a variety of well-known personalities answering real questions written by girls.
As someone who appreciates the complexities of parenting in ways that merit serious attention to so-called “traditional” values and the fact that each generation’s uniqueness demands respect, this Emmy winner’s guidance struck me as genuinely wise.
In the clip – no comedy bits, just ten minutes of sincerity – Colbert (a practicing Catholic raising three kids in New Jersey) answers questions written by four different girls he’s never met, simply sitting at his desk and speaking from the heart. If you ask me, each of his replies will either make you a better parent, or remind you that by already practicing what Colbert preaches, you’re doing a pretty good job!
A summary of his four insights:
1. Kids should invest in those who truly care about them, and try their best to ignore the rest. This is great advice for all of us, actually.
2. Assume that there’s something to be gained and learned by at least listening to the people about whom you care, even when you don’t agree with their position. This applies to parents, kids and pretty much everyone else.
3. Lying and loving aren’t compatible. You can give someone a few chances to get it right, but honest communication is the foundation of any relationship.
4. You know somebody likes you when they want to hear your stories. When that person want to make your day better (not just their own), that’s a person who likes you.
Not bad for a guy who rose to fame on Comedy Central, huh?
Image credit: Helga Esteb/Shutterstock.com
Listed for many years in Newsweek as one of America’s “50 Most Influential Rabbis” and recognized as one of our nation’s leading “Preachers and Teachers,” by Beliefnet.com, Rabbi Brad Hirschfield serves as the President of Clal–The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, a training institute, think tank, and resource center nurturing religious and intellectual pluralism within the Jewish community, and the wider world, preparing people to meet the biggest challenges we face in our increasingly polarized world.
An ordained Orthodox rabbi who studied for his PhD and taught at The Jewish Theological Seminary, he has also taught the University of Pennsylvania, where he directs an ongoing seminar, and American Jewish University. Rabbi Brad regularly teaches and consults for the US Army and United States Department of Defense, religious organizations — Jewish and Christian — including United Seminary (Methodist), Yeshivat Chovevei Torah (Modern Orthodox) Luther Seminary (Lutheran), and The Jewish Theological Seminary (Conservative) — civic organizations including No Labels, Odyssey Impact, and The Aspen Institute, numerous Jewish Federations, and a variety of communal and family foundations.
Hirschfield is the author and editor of numerous books, including You Don’t Have To Be Wrong For Me To Be Right: Finding Faith Without Fanaticism, writes a column for Religion News Service, and appears regularly on TV and radio in outlets ranging from The Washington Post to Fox News Channel. He is also the founder of the Stand and See Fellowship, which brings hundreds of Christian religious leaders to Israel, preparing them to address the increasing polarization around Middle East issues — and really all currently polarizing issues at home and abroad — with six words, “It’s more complicated than we know.”