When I was a young girl, I never seemed to have enough time to
do whatever I wanted or had to do. Words like electricity,
plumbing and washing machines were never in our vocabulary,
which means we needed more time to do our chores. Half of the
day we spent at school and the other half were devoted to
homework and housework. Housework? Yes, and plenty of it. We had
to fetch water and firewood, do the laundry by hand, scrub
floors, and do shopping etc., etc. There was hardly enough time
to play.We still have to perform the same tasks today, but
now we can walk into a store, and buy appliances like electric
stoves, frying pans, electric kettles, washing machines,
dishwashers, steam irons, vacuum cleaners and just about any
machine to make our life easier. Not to mention the various
liquids, creams and powders especially manufactured to remove
stains and marks. Who needs elbow grease? I am older now and
grateful for little luxuries, because I have enough time to do
whatever I want, whenever I want.
I look at my children and they seem to have a lot of time on
their hands, and I sometimes have to dig up some chores to keep
them occupied. What do your children do with their time? I know
there are young ones who spend their time doing stuff scholars
are supposed to do, like studying, doing research, attending
workshops, doing sports and so forth. Those are the children who
try their utmost to pursue their dreams and reach their goals in
life.
Unfortunately there are a great number of youngsters who are
only interested in having fun. They spend their time roaming the
streets, standing on street corners, visiting nightclubs, doing
drugs, and do just about everything to keep them on a high. I am
not a perfect parent, but I try my best to teach my kids right
from wrong, and Im sure we all do. It is an enormous task to
raise children, and to make matters worse, most married women
have to have a full time job to contribute to the household
financially. It is just impossible to watch our kids twenty-four
hours out of twenty-four, and they are often left to fend for
themselves. By the time they reach puberty, no parent will be
able to bend that tree any more.
The good news is that we still have the opportunity to bend
the smaller trees, teach them to be responsible children, so
they can grow into responsible adults. I once asked my mother
why we have so many chores to do. This is what she said:
Seven-year olds should be taught to make their own beds, put
their dirty clothes in the laundry basket, keep their rooms
tidy, rake the leaves and make their own sandwiches. Ten-year
olds should do all of the above, plus wash their own socks and
underwear, sweep the floor, take care of their pets, help clean
up around the house and water the garden. Fifteen-year olds
should do all of the above, plus prepare at least three meals
per week, baking, help take care of their siblings, fixing and
mending broken or torn items, and do the shopping once in a
while. Twenty-year olds will then do all of the above, and more,
without someone telling them.
You will probably think that they will never have the time to
perform all these tasks, but we did, and without the help of
machines. We teach our babies to walk and talk, and they become
toddlers. Toddlers grow into teenagers who become the adults of
tomorrow. We often allow our children to venture into the adult
world too soon, and they grab the opportunity to test the
waters. Of course they will then do what adults are supposed to
do, although they are not ready or capable to handle the
pressure of the adult world. Parents should exercise their
authority, not by using whips and rods. What we need is love. If
we love someone, we dont want him or her to get hurt and try
our best to protect them from the bad things out there. We also
need wisdom to teach our children some responsibility. We wont
live forever, and I dont think any of us would like to leave
this earth, knowing that our children will not be able to
survive on their own. Then, very important, your child should be
taught to practice religion from a very early age. Without God
in our lives, we wont have the pleasure of the afterlife.
Parents, before you go to bed tonight, say this prayer:
Almighty God, I praise you and thank you for the gift of life.
Lord, I am not perfect for I am only human, a sinner, but I am
also a parent. Please open my eyes so I can see the weaknesses
in my children. Give me the wisdom to teach my children to turn
those weaknesses into power, to fight against Satan and his
tempting, evil ways. Give me enough strength to pull my children
away from Satan, and into Your Kingdom.
Butterfly.
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