Choices and Consequences

So I recently heard about a couple of kids in their very late teens traveling in Europe who made some interesting choices that ended up in physical harm. The result was not life threatening, so no worries, but it got me thinking. When I hear stories like this I think about what I would do if and when my kids end up in a similar situation. I think my initial reaction would be frustration at the choice, and probably anger, and then restrictions on everything they do from then on out. But upon thinking about it more, its these choices and consequences that make each of us who we are. It's progressive revelation. Experiences and consequences are what make us wiser as we go through life.
Many of you know that Siri has been slow to talk. And by slow to talk I don't mean that she's developmentally delayed; I mean that she is slowER than Emma was. Emma was having conversations by 18 months, and Siri's vocabulary totals about 10 words, most of which can only be understood by her immediate family. It's really hard to have a non-talker after having a talker. I realize that I have been treating her like a baby much longer because she is not talking. And thus, letting her get away with more. Siri likes to throw things so we've been trying to stop this behavior when I realized the other day that I throw things all the time. I chuck their toys all over their room when I'm cleaning up, so it occurred to me that it doesn't make sense to her when we tell her not to throw things. And who in the world really grows up not throwing anything EVER? I have adjusted my instruction to, "Don't throw your toys at people." No, it's still not acceptable to throw toys, but from my life experience I have learned where and with what velocity to throw a specific toy. Siri will have to learn all of this through trial and error. A toy breaking will be a great lesson, I'm sure, and we'll have to wait til this happens for Siri to understand. And it will make her wiser...progressively.