撰文：家庭動力心理輔導員及全球職業發展師賴舜薇
孩子出生的時候，人們喜歡討論他的長相，將他與父母哪裡長得相似作為談資，議論他遺傳了父母哪些漂亮的外觀。 大一些，脾性出現的時候，也喜歡探究他的個性到底像了誰。
和自己性情相近的人相處，一般都比較容易，因為個性、喜好上的類近，心也容易走得近，如果孩子與自己性情相近，當家長的，似乎也容易些。 但上帝好像喜歡和我們開玩笑一樣，往往給我們「錯配」了孩子：活潑外向的媽媽收穫安靜內斂的女兒；脾氣暴躁的父親面對多愁善感的兒子；不懂玩樂的媽媽遇上享樂主義的兒子。
來求助的父母共同點都是與「錯配」的孩子有相處困難。他們不能接納孩子的天性，不能理解孩子的做法，也不知道如何才能調教自己的孩子。
那位外向活潑的媽媽向我「投訴」：「女兒做事磨蹭，畏手畏腳，在外不敢交朋友。 」她百思不得其解：「刷牙有什麼難的？ 上英文課有什麼怕的？ 認識其他小朋友，有什麼好害羞的呢？」為甚麼她女兒一點都不像她，卻像那位優柔寡斷，內向膽小，無所作為的父親呢？ 說著說著，她已經間接告訴我，她的問題是不接納自己的配偶，是將對配偶的不滿嫁禍到他們的女兒身上。所以，問題不在她女兒，而是在他們的夫婦關係上。
Written by: Lai Shun Mei, Family Dynamics Counselor and Global Career Developer
When a child is born, people like to discuss his appearance, using his resemblance to his parents as a topic of conversation, and talk about which attractive features he has inherited from them. As he grows older and his temperament begins to show, they also like to explore whose personality he resembles.
It is generally easier to get along with someone who has a similar temperament because similar personalities and preferences make it easier to connect. If a child has a temperament similar to their parents, it seems to make parenting easier. However, it often seems like God enjoys playing jokes on us by giving us “mismatched” children: an outgoing and lively mother ends up with a quiet and introverted daughter; a hot-tempered father faces a sensitive and sentimental son; a mother who doesn’t understand fun encounters a hedonistic son.
Parents who seek help often share the common issue of having difficulty getting along with their “mismatched” child. They cannot accept the child’s nature, do not understand the child’s behavior, and do not know how to properly guide their child.
The outgoing and lively mother “complained” to me: “My daughter dawdles, is hesitant, and doesn’t dare to make friends outside.” She couldn’t understand: “What’s so difficult about brushing teeth? What’s so scary about attending English class? What’s there to be shy about when meeting other kids?” Why is her daughter nothing like her but instead resembles her indecisive, introverted, timid, and unambitious father? As she spoke, she indirectly revealed to me that her problem was not accepting her spouse and projecting her dissatisfaction with her spouse onto their daughter. Therefore, the issue was not with her daughter but with their marital relationship
那位脾氣暴躁的父親不得不前來「討教」，是因為他兒子只和媽媽好，不和他好，他深愛兒子，不希望兒子長得像女孩子一樣，多愁善感，哭哭啼啼，孩子越大 ，他越著急。 但辱駡、嚴令之下，孩子不但沒有變得堅強，反而出現更多退縮，圍著媽媽不肯離開。 明白之下才明白，原來這位父親，就是在棍棒和辱駡聲中長大的。 他以為自己的堅強來自於這樣的教育，而不曉得，那些造成他心靈傷痛的經歷，已經成為他的內隱記憶，影響著他與兒子的相處。
聲稱自己不會玩樂，不需要玩樂的母親對一門心思只有玩的兒子束手無策。 她說兒子對待學業馬虎大意，對待玩樂卻持久專注，如何讓兒子扭轉對學業的態度呢？ 我對這位母親的報稱感到好奇，什麼人會不喜歡玩呢？ 尋求快樂是每個人的天性，為何她堅稱自己是不需要娛樂的人呢？ 原來她小時候也貪玩的，但卻受到母親的嚴苛管教，不許她「浪費」時間。 她的生活裡面漸漸沒有了玩伴，纏著和母親玩的時候，她的母親在遊戲中依然嚴肅認真，對她當仁不讓，於是她常常輸，也常常傷心，漸漸地，她就厭惡玩遊戲了 。 她的母親「成功」塑造出一個「不喜歡」玩耍的她，一個看起來堅強，專注學業的她，但同時也塑造了一個刻板、自卑、缺少快樂的她。 難怪她不懂跟天生快樂的兒子相處了。
原來上帝為我們「錯配」孩子，是別有用心。 祂想我們在與孩子相處的挫敗中，反思自己與配偶、與父母之間的關係，反思自己的成長經歷，從而理順這些關係，化解這些心結。
家長對孩子的不接納，就是對自身的不接納，對孩子沒有信心，就是對自身的不自信。 籍著照顧「錯配」的孩子，父母感到困難，繼而察覺到自己的痛處，在治療師的協助下，開始自我探索之旅。 他們理清、理順自己的家庭關係，並從中獲得重生和成長。 孩子是天生的，沒有錯配的，讓我們善用這種成長的契機吧！
The hot-tempered father had to come for advice because his son only got along with his mother and not with him. He deeply loved his son and did not want him to grow up being overly sensitive and tearful like a girl. The older the child got, the more anxious the father became. However, under insults and strict orders, the child did not become stronger but instead became more withdrawn, clinging to his mother and refusing to leave her side. It was only after understanding the situation that it became clear that this father had grown up amidst beatings and insults. He believed his own strength came from such an upbringing, not realizing that those painful experiences had become implicit memories affecting his relationship with his son.
The mother, who claimed she did not know how to play and did not need to play, was at a loss with her son, who was solely focused on playing. She said her son was careless with his studies but persistently focused on play. How could she change her son’s attitude towards his studies? I was curious about this mother’s claim—who wouldn’t like to play? Seeking happiness is human nature, so why did she insist she did not need entertainment? It turned out that she was also playful as a child but was strictly disciplined by her mother, who did not allow her to “waste” time. Gradually, her life lacked playmates, and when she played with her mother, her mother remained serious and uncompromising, often causing her to lose and feel sad. Over time, she grew to dislike playing games. Her mother “successfully” shaped her into someone who “did not like” to play, someone who appeared strong and focused on studies but was also rigid, insecure, and lacking in joy. No wonder she did not understand how to get along with her naturally joyful son.
It turns out that God “mismatched” children for us with a purpose. He wants us to reflect on our relationships with our spouses and parents, and our own growth experiences through the frustrations of interacting with our children, thereby sorting out these relationships and resolving these emotional knots.
Parents’ lack of acceptance of their children is a reflection of their lack of acceptance of themselves. A lack of confidence in their children is a lack of confidence in themselves. By taking care of “mismatched” children, parents feel challenged and then become aware of their own pain points. With the help of a therapist, they begin a journey of self-exploration. They clarify and straighten out their family relationships, gaining rebirth and growth in the process. Children are born as they are, and there is no mismatch. Let us make good use of this opportunity for growth!
