It's Official

I’m afraid of not being able to provide the needs of my family. What if my job won’t be enough? What if something bad happen to me?  What if I’m not able to give my kids proper education? What if I’m not able to feed my kids? A lot of what ifs and I really fear them. 

But the good thing about fear is that I know that I have to do something about it. I need to have contingency. I already started with the initial steps a couple of years ago. I will share with you what I did in another post and it’s more about the financial stuffs which is something we can have more control. But what about the others that are more difficult to get a hold with?

Like how our kids will behave when they grow up? Will they be strong? Will they be confident? Will they be successful? We can read a lot of advice about good parenting. But can we really follow them all and be assured of bright future for our kids? But I think the right question should be, are we parents properly equipped with knowledge and character to guide our kids grow and mature as good citizens? It’s more of who we are more than what we do which creates bigger impact to our children.

Yes, we do need it. Right, uhmm Pink Floyd?

Most of us are guilty of focusing on only one thing. Education. We’re dictated by the system or whatever that our children must do well in school because if not, they will fail in the future. We push our children too hard to become part of the honor roll and even sometimes to be the number one.  And there are instances that it becomes a competition between parents already and not among the children. It’s because for each parent, their children are the best. That’s understandable. But do the children understand the reasons why their parents are doing it? Or are they just trying too hard out of fear of being scolded? Is the simple “we’re just doing it for you” statement enough for our kids to realize why their parents do this?

It’s good to have most parents being involved with their kids’ studies. But hopefully not to the point of exhausting the child’s energy and getting fed up at the early stages of his life. Try making them realize that education is important but it is not the end of everything in their lives. And there are other things that matter more than being confident and competitive. There are all those other virtues that our children also need to learn.  

More than being the smartest in the class is how they can get along with all the other people in it.  Try to make them understand that there’s only one top student in a classroom so the odds that they will not be that person is bigger. Then letting them know that it is just fine as long as they are able to do good with their studies at the same time being respectful of their teachers and friends.  And if ever they’ll be able to get the highest award in their class, remind them that it’s also the best time for them to become the most humble.  Imagine parents and kids competing with each other but this time, trying to outdo each other in terms of virtues and character.  Everyone trying to be the most humble, oh how peaceful and delightful that competition would be.

And on the other hand, it’s official. We’ll be having a daughter before the year ends. My wife and I are so excited. Though our son is too young to be aware of his incoming sibling, we do our best to make him realize he already has a baby sister inside his mommy’s growing tummy. When we ask him “where’s your sis”, he’ll point at his mom’s belly and then kisses it.  We will be one big happy four-member family by Christmas and it would be a very merry one. And I hope and pray that we will be able to take good care of them so that they may grow as responsible people in the future.