Are your children cherished?

Aruna,

Yes, you are right. All relationships are precious and should never be taken for granted. Only if we realize that time is a mirage, we can do what we can to ensure that every minute with our loved ones count. I am trying hard to remember and practice this lesson in my life. Thanks for visiting this thread Aruna.

 

Oh Srama, are you sure that you are of Indian origin? Because you don't sound like a normal, Indian mother at all. You are a mom and you don't nag??? And most importantly, you tell your kids it is okay to slip in their grades??? One last question for you. What did your children do to deserve you as their mother? My hats off to you for an absolutely priceless attitude towards parenting. You are now officially my parenting guru.

 

Thank you, dear Raba, for your understanding.

Amen to that!

 

Dear dimepona,

First of all, I am glad to make your acquaintance here in IL. Thank you for chipping in with your thoughts on the issue of parenting.

I completely agree with you. I am as culpable as everyone in this. There are moments when I fall prey to this rat race too but these days I am trying hard to see my actions through my children' s eyes and to curb my instinct to push for perfection.

Teaching a child good moral values in life is the duty of every parent but so is standing back and allowing them to make their share of mistakes and learn hard lessons in life. I will stop here before I get carried away again.

 

Dear Viji aunty,

Thank you for your kind words. I can easily see you as a loving mom whom the children can count on for support at any time. If Uncle took on the role of a disciplinarian, then you had good balance in your home. As you rightly said, children are indeed God's gifts to be cherished forever.

 

Dear Knot,

How are you? Why haven't we seen anything new from you in the Snippets lately? Do treat us soon with a post, Knot.

Yes, this girl's untimely death last year left a lasting impression in my mind and ever since I have been trying to mend my ways as a parent. All I can say is that it is a work in progress.

 

My dearest Mythila aunty,

It takes enormous courage to make a public confession of any mistake and here you are baring your soul to all of IL with no secrets spared. No wonder you continue to be an inspiration to so many in IL. :bowdown

You are not alone in this aunty. I was just like you until last year taking my disciplinarian role a little too seriously. Like you, I did what I thought was best for the kids but in the process I bruised their confidence a few times and set unrealistic expectations to succeed. In my desire to see them reach their potential, I forgot to create an atmosphere of easy affection where the children could come to me with any of their problems and fears. I am so glad to have realized my mistakes sooner than later and now have a real chance of making it up to my kids.

Thank you for helping me unburden my soul too. Now that I have confessed my past mistakes, I feel better too aunty.

 

Dear Radhikrish,

I completely understand what you mean by 'Really I am confused now as to how to handle kids.' You are not alone in this. Finding the right balance between affection and discipline is hard to achieve for a lot of parents like us. Don't laugh but many times I had wished that children came with instruction manuals :bonkbut since they don't we have to go with our gut feelings and do what we think is best for them. Whatever the method, at the end if we can leave ourselves accessible to our children, then we are not doing such a bad job, I think. Thank you for adding your valuable comments to this important discussion Radhikrish. :thumbsup